Stalker's Struggle: The Dark Tale Of Everyone's Favorite "hallucination" [Completed]

[Katakuna]

 

Since this story has finished, I figured I should write a new intro that accurately reflects what it turned out to be.

 

This fanfic, this 131 page story plus small side stories, tells the tale of Stalker and how he came to be what we players know him as in the current state of the game.  Why we're inclined to believe he's just a hallucination, why he is hunting us, why he exacts revenge in the name of Grineer and Infested alike, and more.  It also aims to predict a few things, like what potential future faction might be tied to his existence, what lies beneath that shadowed mask, and whether or not we Tenno are his actual targets.

 

Be prepared to delve into the mind of the renowned assassin, Stalker, and relive his struggle through his own eyes!  Only then, will you understand the truth that has so far eluded us all..

 

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Chapter 1: Fired

Mustering what strength remained, I maintained my meditative stance during the teleportation process. The blood, my blood, seeped out of the lacerations and holes that marked my armor. The fatigue swelled while my strength dwindled, until I finally found myself inside my sanctuary. Surrounded by the sense of familiarity from my ship, I collapsed pathetically upon the floor. Lying in the center of the small ship that I called home, an involuntary sigh escaped my lips. The chill that breached my armor paled in comparison to the blinding pain of my wounds. Exhaling sharply, I slowly lifted myself upright and began limping towards the humble med-station -- that consisted of a chair, a thin table, and an assortment of surgery tools -- which had been collecting stains of my growing scars. Before I could sit down, a comm transmission broke the silence.

“You failed again,” stated the garbled voice of my employer in a condescending tone.

I remained silent. There was nothing to say in my defense, and we both knew it.

“That’s the tenth time in a row. Needless to say, our contract is hereby terminated. Your security clearance has been revoked, you are no longer allowed access into our territory. If you or your ship are spotted, you will be attacked on sight.”

“Acknowledged,” I uttered as I clenched my eyes shut and grit my teeth, my head lowered in shame.

“We gave you a chance. You served us well, but you outlived your usefulness. Goodbye, Firstborn.”

With that, the comms disconnected and silence filled the room again. My breath grew heavy as I tore my helmet off and threw it against the wall on the opposite side of the room. My professionalism shattered in an instant as I cursed and slammed my fist down on an arm of the chair. The rage inside my heart overlapped the pain of aggravating my wounds. Sitting myself forcefully upon the chair, I hastily threw off my cuirass and grabbed one of the surgical tools on the table. Using the tweezer-esque tool, I dug into one of the several bullet holes in my chest and began yanking out the shell that was firmly lodged in the wound. The sharp pain that usually soothed my anger had no effect. With a loud grunt, I tore the bullet shell out and a flowing stream of blood along with it.

“I can’t believe this,” I muttered through gritted teeth as I prepared to extract the next shell. “What have I been doing this whole time?!”

My thoughts returned to the battles that had resulted in failure each time. I could not figure out what had changed. I performed to the best of my ability, as I had always done, so why was I returning to my ship nearly dead so often now? Are the Tenno getting stronger? Is the Lotus somehow giving them the upper edge? Have they learned how to construct technology superior to mine?

“Or.. am I getting weaker?”

Tearing out another shell, I sighed as my eyes traveled over my room. From the cockpit, to the armor stand, to the weapon rack, until ultimately ending up on my helmet. Taking a brief respite from tending my wounds, I moved to grab my helmet before sitting upon the chair again. Holding the tool in one hand and the helmet in the other, I stared at the face of my helmet. The black and red helmet that I was born into this life with. The helmet the Tenno used to fear coming face to face against.

“Am I really.. too weak to fight against them now?” I mumbled to myself as I readied myself for another shell removal. “Some Firstborn I am, huh.”

‘Firstborn’, that’s what my employers always called me. The exact story behind that is unknown to me due to my fuzzy recollection of just having awoken from cryosleep when I apparently received it. The way it was told to me, I am the first to have awaken from cryosleep without the Lotus’ assistance. Consequently, that also means I never had the chance to be brainwashed into being a mindless mass-murdering pawn for whatever game they’re playing. I guess ‘Firstborn’ is just a romantic title saying that I’m the first to actually be born into this world as opposed to manufactured.

“Now it’s used more as an insult,” I muttered before removing yet another shell from my chest. By my estimate, only two remain.

With yet another sigh, my thoughts turned towards my future now that I’m unemployed. Finding work as a hitman for either the Corpus or the Grineer is out of the question now. Without the proper information network, I don't know where the Infested are focusing their efforts, so working to cleanse them would be impossible. I strained to think of something, when one option crossed my mind. The thought of working for the Lotus. Shaking my head furiously, I immediately shot that down.

There was no way I’d sink so low as to work for them; the Grineer and Corpus aren’t saints by any stretch of the imagination, but the Tenno are monsters. Attacking everyone indiscriminately, slaughtering entire ships worth of soldiers and taking no prisoners, they’re as bad as the Infested if not worse. Thankfully, they’ve yet to aim their sights on any civilian-occupied outposts and cities, but I’m reluctant to imagine the terrible outcomes that would result if they did.

Swiftly removing the two remaining bullet shells, I placed my helmet and tool on the table and leaned back in my chair, staring at the ceiling. Not long afterward, my helmet glowed in a dim light, signalling a comm transmission. Slightly startled but mostly curious as to who could possibly be contacting me, I reached out to put my helmet back on.

“No need to move, we can talk just fine like this,” stated a surprisingly human, female sounding voice from my helmet. “You look less intimidating without it on, anyway.”

Remaining silent, I crossed my arms and stared at the helmet. The voice didn’t sound like any Corpus or Grineer I’ve ever heard, and I knew it wasn’t the Lotus. Saying that, I wracked my brain trying to figure out who she was.

“Ever the professional, I see. At least those parts of the reports are accurate,” the voice continued on. “I’ve got some information you might want to see.”

“Who are you? How do you know who I am?” I asked, determining that I have no clue who this voice belongs to.

“Irrelevant,” the voice stated brusquely. “I’m sending you the coordinates to a planetary Corpus outpost on Venus. Be there within the next six hours, and I’ll contact you again with further details.”

“Why should I do as you demand? What will I find there?” I asked, greatly annoyed at whoever this character was. “Tell me, or I will refuse to acknowledge your orders.”

The voice was silent for a brief moment before stating, “The future. Not only for yourself, but every soul in the solar system.”

Involuntarily quirking an eyebrow at the unbelieveable words the voice just spoke, I was left wordless. Whether from the shock of the coincidental timing, or the sheer gall this female had expecting me to believe that.

“We’ll talk more when you get there,” the voice spoke once more, “finish covering up those scratches before you leave, Firstborn.”

With that last line of sass, the comm disconnected. I let out a long sigh before I stood up and walked over to the cockpit. Easing myself into the comfortable seat, I set a course for the coordinates that displayed themselves on the main console. I was unsure why I decided to listen to that voice. It could’ve been desperation for a purpose, or I could’ve been high off the pain of having forcefully torn out five bullet shells just minutes ago. Whatever the reason, I confirmed the coordinates for an outpost close to Tessera and engaged the thrusters.

“Alright, Mysterious Voice, let’s just see what this ‘future’ is all about.”

Chapter 2: Revelation

Hours passed in relative silence, only the soft hum of the engine filling the air. Checking and triple checking the condition of my gear to pass the time, I couldn’t seem to calm myself. Opting to let my warframe rest in its stand -- a molded indentation not unlike the Tenno have in their snub fighters -- I performed routine maintenance on my Braton Vandal. As the minutes turned to hours after the Mysterious Voice stopped speaking to me, I had plenty of time to mull over what exactly just happened; the physical high that I had experienced beforehand swiftly passed, allowing me to think with a clear head. Despite that, my mind was a scrambled myriad of thoughts on the current situation as I switched over to examining my Cronus.

“Come to think of it, this whole mess could very well be a trap,” I thought out loud, striking the air with my Cronus, testing its weight. “She did contact me shortly after I was fired, after all.”

Granted, I should’ve been vastly more concerned about the timing of her call. The only way she would know about my employment status so soon after it was changed was if she was keeping tabs on me regularly. Although, her being a Grineer or Corpus using some special voice modulator wouldn’t be entirely out of the question either. That brings up the question, however, on why ‘she’ -- if the voice is actually a female -- would go to such lengths to make contact with the Firstborn; the title having degraded from widely respected to widely mocked, as it has.

“To their credit, if this is a trap, it’s quite elaborate,” I muttered as I placed my Cronus upon it’s stand.

It was then that I felt my ship slip out of FTL transit, but as I turned to move to the cockpit, I noticed the glow of the comms emitting from my helmet. Pretending to have not seen it, I continued to walk towards the cockpit.

“It’s rude to turn your back on a lady, Firstborn,” sounded off the familiar voice from my helmet. “Don’t let unemployment rob you of your manners.”

“I’m here. Provide mission details,” I replied, brushing off her attempts at humor as I reluctantly turned once more to face my helmet.

“Fine, fine, straight to business,” the voice spoke with what I swore was a sigh in between, but she immediately changed tone afterwards. “The coordinates, as you saw, direct you to an outpost that is close to the manufacturing plant designated ‘Tessera’. I want you to get planetside and infiltrate that outpost. Once there-”

“Stop. Asking me to take action against one of my previous employers will cost you more than standard rate,” I interjected.

“Don’t misunderstand, this isn’t a ‘mission’ as you’re thinking it is. I’m not paying you to do this; I’m giving you instructions to acquire the information I mentioned before,” she retorted. “I’ll wager what you find there will be worth far more than any amount of currency. In fact, I guarantee it.”

“You are not providing sufficient reason to follow your orders. I am not in the business of wasting my time.”

“You’re not in any business at present,” she jabbed, stinging my pride. “If you feel like you’re wasting your time here, there’s nothing I can do to stop you from leaving. However, you will definitely regret it.”

Releasing a grumble of discontent, I crossed my arms while squinting my eyes at my helmet. If what she said earlier about the ‘future of the solar system’ had any ring of truth to it, then it was something I could not ignore. Then again, it could still just be an elaborate trap.

“Give me a reason to not expect running into an ambush,” I replied, losing my patience.

“There is a Tenno squad planetside right now, nearing the same outpost. I’ll even send you feedback from the security cameras if you require proof.”

My eyes widened against my will. Right then, I knew for certain that whoever is on the other side of the comms is neither a Grineer nor a Corpus. They would have to be foolish to secretly hire me for another Tenno assassination mission after my numerous, humiliating failures. It seems that whoever this voice is, she’s not as well informed as I estimated she was.

“Relax, I’m not asking you to fight them yet. If you’ll let me continue, I will explain.” After a moment’s silence, she proceeded anyway. “I suggest you infiltrate the outpost on the opposite end of the approaching Tenno and silently make your way to their position. You will be there to observe.”

“Observation?” I asked rhetorically, briefly pondering whether I should accept. Stealth is no challenge for me, but I’ve never been tasked with strictly reconnaissance. “Acknowledged. I will initiate infiltration in one minute.”

“Good,” she replied in a slightly relieved tone, “I’ll contact you again when you near the Tenno squad. You should view the camera feeds before you begin.”

“Don’t tell me how to do my jo-” I began to retort, before the comms were disconnected. With a scoff, I shook my head and moved to don my armor.

Now, it would be a lie to say that I wasn’t looking forward to this mission to some degree, but my less than stellar track record thus far when facing the Tenno left me with a sense of doubt. With a glance over towards the now alit main display in the cockpit, it was clear what four specific Tenno were advancing upon the outpost. A Rhino, Ash, and two Excaliburs, but they seemed to lack any sense of teamwork and coordination. In the past, that would’ve made them easy targets, but doubt still plagued my resolve.

“Well, simple reconnaissance shouldn’t be any trouble,” I spoke in self-assurance. “That information better be worth the effort, though.”

Slipping on my helmet and locking it into place, I instinctually moved to gather my weapons as my armor’s systems booted up. My Braton Vandal and my Cronus, both looted off an inexperienced Tenno who had the misfortune of being one of my first targets, were ready and raring to redeem themselves on the field of battle. Slinging them over my shoulders into their respective sheaths, with my armor’s systems running smoothly, I proceeded to enter a meditative stance in the center of the room to begin the teleport. After a deep sigh, my eyes eased shut as I visualized the location where I desired to appear.

The chill of snow and ice enveloping me signalled the completion of the teleport. Upon opening my eyes, I found myself kneeling atop one of two raised launch pads overlooking a cliff with a pleasant view of the landscape beyond. Knowing that the Tenno favored such locations for their extraction points, it was safe to say that this was the opposite end of the outpost. From here on out, it was all muscle memory and instinct. A smirk forming on my lips, I rose and leaped off the launch pad, proceeding to infiltrate the facility.

The path towards the base was split in two by a formation of rocks running down the center, and the bay door on the right side leading to the rest of the facility was locked. Securing a perch atop one of the higher points on the rock formation, I noticed multitudes of Corpus guards as well as a handful of civilian engineers speaking excitedly in the midst of a collection of power generators on the other side of the path. The very presence of civilians means that I’ve arrived before the Tenno. That will make it easier to stealth my way through the base.

“Wait a moment,” I thought aloud, “if the security cameras already spotted the Tenno squad, why are the civilians still here? Shouldn’t they have evacuated by now?”

With a bad feeling taking root in my gut, and the only door into the facility being locked, I chose to observe the Corpus a bit longer. The engineers were ushered off by the guards towards another bay door placed in the side of the mountain further down the incline towards the launch pads. As they passed through, the guards locked the door behind them before glancing at each other. Just then, an alarm sounded off throughout the outpost.

“Danger, this facility is under attack by an extremely hostile force. All personnel commence evacuation procedures while security confronts the threat,” stated a monotone voice. “Repeat: all personnel evacuate the facility immediately.”

As the group of guards under my observation moved out to combat the Tenno, I decided to follow them from the shadows. It was my assumption that they would lead me to the Tenno, where my mysterious informant would contact me again. I still have no idea what kind of information I’m supposed to be finding here, so I had to believe that my informant would kindly share that little detail with me when I get there. A sour taste in my mouth, I followed the Corpus squad into the main building through the now unlocked bay door.

Even though I wasn’t there to engage hostiles, the thrill of the hunt swelled inside me regardless. Blending in with the shadows, stalking my quarry, avoiding the notice of any that could potentially be collateral damage, there were few sensations quite like it. The only other feeling that matches or even surpasses the thrill of the hunt is the ecstasy of the kill. The rending of flesh while igniting the gurgles and chokes of imminent death is an experience that I could lose myself in if I’m not careful.

“No good. Got to focus on the task at hand,” I whispered to myself, shaking my head.

The Corpus squad had steadily grown in strength in the time that I had been following them unseen utilizing cloaking technology. After having trekked through about a third of the base and gathering reinforcements along the way, it’s now about a dozen strong with a combination of MOAs, soldiers, and ospreys; even the optimist could see that it’s not enough when fighting against a squad of Tenno, though. They decided to make their stand in the main reactor room, by the looks of it. Which can only mean that-

“It’s about time you made contact! I thought you were a professional at this,” the bothersome voice broke into my thoughts. As I partly expected, she decided to use audio-only when I’m actually wearing my helmet.

“The Tenno are nearing my position. Requesting full mission details,” I responded, straining to suppress my annoyance.

“Observe the Tenno, nothing else.”

“What?” I asked in disbelief. “Their mission here is almost over. There is little to observe.”

“Who’s fault is that? Just don’t stop observing them until you see them fly away in their fighters,” she retorted swiftly.

“Acknowledged,” I muttered with a sigh as I scanned the room for a decent perch that is away from the fighting.

Looking upwards, I spotted a thick metal beam connecting the topmost part of the rotating reactor to the opposite wall. With a wall run up the wall parallel to it, I leaped towards the beam and managed to grab the ledge. I barely pulled myself up onto it before the Tenno burst into the room guns blazing. First was the Ash, running ahead of its squad as expected. However, the Ash just kept on running past all the Corpus and even the reactor before running out the other exit. It was strange, but I didn’t have time to dwell on it before the Rhino and Excaliburs arrived.

They slaughtered the Corpus security forces with ease; the whole fight didn’t take more than half a minute. Two Slash Dashes and a Radial Blast after entry, security was essentially wiped out. Followed up with Braton fire from the Excaliburs and Gorgon suppressive fire from the Rhino, there was nothing left. However, after collecting the spoils of their victory, they just left the reactor room without so much as giving the reactor a second glance.

“Did their mission objective change?” I thought aloud, jumping down from my perch to follow the Tenno.

The Ash was nowhere to be seen, but the Rhino and Excaliburs were quickly making their way to the extraction point. There was little left in the way of Corpus resistance, so they just mowed down any remaining security forces they came across without slowing their pace. Great care was needed to avoid alerting them to my presence. Simply because they’re monsters doesn’t mean they are stupid. So long as I don’t get too close to them, they shouldn’t detect me.

It didn’t take long for the extraction point to come into view once more, having followed the Tenno out the destroyed ventilation shaft. In the distance, I could see the Ash standing atop the launch pad, perhaps keeping the extraction zone secure. The Rhino and Excaliburs were making their way down the split path, taking their time.

“Arrogant in a job well done?” I mused, before noticing where the Rhino and Excaliburs were heading after nearly reaching the launch pad.

They had turned and began approaching the bay door that had been locked when I left last, the same door the Corpus civilians entered before the alarm sounded. I had wondered whether they were just searching the rest of the outpost for anything else to loot before leaving, but the bad feeling that had formed in my gut since the start forced me to continue observing them. Reluctantly, I followed them through the bay door.

There wasn’t much to see, just a fairly long rectangular room with half a dozen doors spaced evenly on both sides. I leaned against the corner beside the bay door to give the Tenno some space. The Rhino moved towards one door and opened it. Shortly after doing so, cries for mercy started filling the air. More screams of fear piled on top of them as the Excaliburs each opened other doors. Immediately, the Tenno started spraying gunfire into their respective rooms, converting the screams of terror into those of pain. Eventually, only the muffled shouts coming from the other rooms were left.

“I have a very bad feeling about this,” I whispered, furrowing my brow as I watched the Rhino calmly walk over to the next room in line.

Moving over towards the room that the Rhino just left, timing it just right so the door remained open to avoid suspicion, I peered inside the room. Initially, I was unwilling to believe this was what it looked like, but there was no mistaking it. The corpses of the unarmed personnel of the base were strewn about the room. That is, if ‘corpses’ is the proper term, as that Gorgon more or less turned the majority of their bodies into mincemeat. With a quick glance at the other rooms, it was all the same. Granted, the Braton made the corpses look a bit more clean, but it makes no difference in the end. Innocent civilians of varying security clearance levels, judging by what remains of their uniforms.

“I won’t stand idly by while these monsters murder civilians,” I muttered through gritted teeth, moving to unsheath my Cronus.

“Stay your hand, Firstborn,” chimed in the annoying voice at the worst time possible. “You’re here to observe, not engage.”

“I’m acting independently. I will make these Tenno pay for their crimes!”

“Think about this clearly. If you reveal yourself now, you’re just going to get beaten again.” Her words contested with the continued terrified screams and gunshots.

“Don’t try and stop me! These actions are unforgivable!” I shouted in retort, unsheathing my Cronus fully.

“Do you want to die?!” She shouted powerfully into my ears, forcing me to wince. “If you do, then by all means, reveal yourself here and try and save these people! You and I both know how that will end! Use your damn head!”

My body was paralyzed with anger. I knew she was right, of course she was right. Making myself known here would be a death sentence. Yet, I felt a part of me die little by little with each room the Tenno cleared. The Tenno.. speaking of which, why did the gunshots stop?

Upon returning my attention to the Tenno, they all had their heads turned in my direction. My cloak was still engaged, I knew that, so why were they staring at me? Don’t tell me they were actually able to hear our argument over their gunfire. That would be such a bad joke. The Rhino looked at the Excaliburs and nodded its head in the direction of the door. All three of them slowly made their way outside, guns at the ready as the door eventually closed behind them. Taking several steps away from the door, I let out my breath which I had found myself holding.

“Her shouting nearly killed me,” I whispered to myself before noticing one door that had yet to be opened. “Did they forget this one?”

Perhaps our argument ironically saved some lives. Sheathing my Cronus, I moved to the door and opened it, but it didn’t immediately register what I found. Whatever hope I had of finding any survivors was thrown out into space. The civilians who had been in this room, decided that they would rather die on their own terms. Their bodies hung by their necks from the ceiling, held up only by their belts. The macabre sight was too much for me, forcing me to look away.

“So, is this the information you wanted me to see?” I asked aloud, expecting her to have been listening in as I slid down against the wall onto the floor. “The Tenno have finally forsaken the last of their honor?”

“It may seem that way, but listen to me,” she began in the gravest tone I’ve heard from her thus far. “What if I told you, that the Tenno weren’t aware that they were killing civilians?”

“Don’t lie to me. It seemed pretty clear that those Tenno knew exactly what they were doing.”

“Yes, they did; but, what if I now told you that they didn’t see what you saw?”

“What are you getting at?”

“What if, instead of seeing unarmed civilians, they saw armed security guards? Guards just like those they killed minutes before?”

“How do you figure that?” I asked, closing my eyes as I laid my head against the wall.

“Do you know what neural sensors are?” After a moment of silence, she continued. “They are the devices in your warframe’s helmet that allow you to see the environment around you. Your ‘eyes’, essentially.”

“And? What do they have to do with anything?” I asked, but I was starting to piece together what she was hinting at.

“What would you think if I told you that, they can be manipulated? Manipulated to see things that are different from reality?”

“Wait, are you telling me what I think you’re telling me?” I was hesitant to believe what she was telling me, but if it was true..

“It’s just a theory, and I’m going to need your help to prove it.”

“Well, what do you need?” I asked, not liking the direction this was taking.

“I’m going to need you to capture a Tenno. Alive.”

 

Chapter 3: Catching the Snake

 

 

Time never seemed to drag on nearly as much as the minutes during and after leaving the Corpus outpost turned ghost town.  I watched with mixed feelings as the Tenno squad took off in their snub fighters without so much as a backward glance.  As I did so, the annoying voice suggested that I return to my ship while she works out the details of her ludicrous plan to capture one of the Tenno.  The plan that she has no far not told me anything about other than to ‘be ready for it.’  My mind was blank during the entire teleport process back to the ship.

 

“I don’t like being led around by the nose like this,” I said wearily to myself as I appeared in my ship, “but I don’t have much of a choice for now.”

 

Due to her vague orders, I was unable to even get out of my armor or sheathe my weapons.  Rising to my feet, I trudged my way over to the cockpit and took a seat -- the comfort of the chair only slightly lowering my stress levels.  Removing my helmet seemed acceptable enough as I placed it atop one of the control panels.  Kicking my feet up on to another control panel while folding my hands behind my head, I stretched out and let my mind wander.

 

“Neural sensor manipulation, somehow capturing a Tenno, the anonymous informant who dragged me into this, the timing of it all..” I mused.  “There’s more going on here than I’m being let in on.”

 

It was difficult to decide which of those aspects was more nerve-wracking.  It’s been effectively proven that, for one reason or another, I can’t combat Tenno like I used to; saying that, the thought of capturing one sounds like an unrealistic task for me.  Perhaps the neural sensor manipulation might have something to do with that?  If they see civilians as soldiers, it’s anybody’s guess what they might see me as.  Although, I could take a guess as to who might know.

 

“Her, the ‘woman’ with the annoying sense of humor,” I groaned in discontent, “and how she got that kind of information in the first place, assuming it’s true.”

 

“A maiden is entitled to her secrets, Firstborn,” stated that same voice from my helmet.  Naturally, she was using video now that I wasn’t wearing my helmet.

 

“Do you have a plan together?” I asked, sitting up and returning my feet to the floor.  “I hope you didn’t make me wait for nothing.”

 

“Relax, I’ve got all the details.  You’re going to like this mission, I bet,” she began, leaving me no time to retort as she continued.  “You’re going to Gamygyn, in the Europa system.  There’s a lone Tenno unit making its way towards a derelict Corpus military ship located there right now.”

 

“A lone Tenno? Any intel on what it’s doing there, or what warframe it’s using?”

 

“Not a clue.  That’s part of your job when you get there, along with capturing it.  I’ll update your objectives once you learn the Tenno’s.  I trust you’ll be able to adapt based on what warframe it’s using,” she finished in a slightly challenging tone.

 

“Of course, a single Tenno should be no trouble,” I lied as I input the newly received coordinates for the military ship and fired up the engines.

 

“Hmm.  Contact me again when you learn what the Tenno is doing there,” she replied, clearly not believing me for a second.  “Oh, and before I forget, I’m sending over a gift to you; might help out when you and the Tenno go head to head.”

 

“Sending over?” I asked confused, before a small module appeared on my lap in an equally small black puff of smoke.  “Hey!  How did-”

 

It was too late, she disconnected the comms.  Now this woman was really trying to screw with me; telling me as a parting shot to install this hardware that she ‘sent over’ into my armor, of all things?  Taking a closer look at the module, nothing seemed particularly suspicious about it aside from the manner in which it was introduced.  However, there was a note scrawled on the underside of it.

 

“‘It should just slide into a slot on the inside of your chassis, near the upper tip of your spine.  Take out the module already attached and replace it with this.  Your generous friend, [REDACTED],’” I read aloud word for word.  “Tch, she wants me to install this in my armor?”

 

Thinking it over, I really didn’t want anything of hers anywhere near my gear.  While she technically hasn’t lied to me yet, I still don’t know anything about her.  Removing my chassis after disabling its systems, I examined the area she described in her note.  Sure enough, there was a similar looking module already in place.  Glancing between that module and the new one, I still remained hesitant.  Taking chances is not how I prefer to run things, but if it will really assist me in defeating a Tenno..

 

“If this destabilizes my armor, I’ll hunt that woman down to the ends of the solar system,” I vowed as I yanked out the old module, tossed it aside somewhere, and shoved in the new one.

 

Waiting for a beep or light to signal a successful module connection yielded no success.  Did it work?  Granted, there were no lights on disconnect and no sound either, so I suppose there would be no such thing for a reconnection.  I donned my chassis once more and booted up its systems, but I didn’t feel any different.  Is this really supposed to help me?  Shrugging it off with a shake of my head, I briefly turned my thoughts towards the actual capturing of the Tenno.

 

“She hasn’t given me any specific instructions regarding that, so I guess I’ll have to think up something on the fly,” I muttered, closing my eyes.  “For now though, I should rest until I get there.”

 

It felt like I had only just shut my eyes before the pinging of my ship’s radar dragged me from slumber.  Apparently, I had slept straight through the transit and was now remaining at a safe distance away from the derelict military ship.  Wasting no time, I adorned my helmet once more and moved to the center of my ship, initiating the teleport.  Knowing very little of what to expect, I envisioned my destination.

 

Finding myself in the middle of a V-shaped room with staircases on either side, I cursed under my breath.  That blasted module must’ve distorted the process, as the teleport was inaccurate.  Thankfully, my cloak still functioned properly.  The Tenno could be in either direction, as well as its exit; however, the room being filled with mostly Chargers, some Runners, and a handful of Toxic as well as Disruptor Ancients indicated that the Tenno has yet to pass through here.  Essentially, that means I fortunately teleported ahead of it.

 

“Now, to wait for it to arrive,” I whispered to myself as I shifted to press my back against the wall, in order to decrease the chances of an Infested bumping into me.

 

The wait was a short one, as soon after I said that, the Tenno burst into the room at full speed.  It jumped into the center of the Infested mob and unleashed a disgusting green mist that melted most of the Infested immediately; I thanked my preemptive moving away from the center, otherwise I would’ve been caught in that blast.  Following that, it let loose a torrent of bullets from its firearm -- what appeared to be a Viper -- upon the remaining Toxic Ancients.  In its other hand, it was carrying a data mass with two blue lights shining on it.  So, it’s here to collect information from the ship’s servers, huh?  The warframe itself is, without a doubt, a Saryn.

 

“I know you can hear me,” I whispered seemingly to myself, “I’ve assessed the Tenno and its mission here.”

 

“Well?” the woman’s voice responded.  “Tell me all the gorey details.”

 

“It’s a Saryn, here to collect information from the ship’s databases.  Estimating it to be over halfway done soon.  Advise new objectives.”  As I spoke, the Saryn ran into the room in between the two staircases and began hacking the terminal located there, the door closing behind it.

 

“Excellent, this should be interesting,” she spoke somewhat excitedly before growing silent for a moment.  “Alright, secure the intel it’s carrying along with the Tenno itself.”

 

“Any preference as to how I capture it?”

 

“Show me your wild side,” she stated with finality before promptly disconnecting the comms.

 

“My wild side?  Guess that means ‘any means necessary,’” I muttered as I approached the door the Saryn was behind little by little, decloaking in the process.

 

This battle won’t just be for my apparent audience.  This battle would be for myself; to prove to myself that I’m not as weak as I -- and a fair portion of the Grineer and Corpus -- had believed I was.  It may only be a single Tenno, but it was the first step on the road to redemption.  Unsheathing my Cronus, I stood directly outside the door just as the Saryn was running out.  It stopped in front of me and, for a brief moment, we stared at each other’s faceless masks.

 

“You shall not leave this place!” I shouted heartily, swinging my Cronus to strike at the Saryn’s neck.

 

The Saryn began to unleash another toxic mist right off the bat, intending to end this encounter quickly.  My immediate thought was to back out of range with all due swiftness.  To both of our surprise, I teleported back to just out of her mist’s range.  What?  How did that happen?  Deciding to test it again, I thought to myself to get behind her for a quick slash.  As my mind willed it, I teleported behind the Saryn and managed to slash its back while it was confused.  Is this what the new module allows me to do?

 

“I can do this; I can defeat it!” I shouted, teleporting out of its range again as it coated its Ether Blades in toxin.

 

The Saryn chased after me, swinging its blades that were aimed to kill with each strike.  However, with this new power, there was no way she could hit me with those.  Teleporting to the top of the stairs, I clenched my fist challengingly at the Saryn.

 

“What are you swinging at?  I’m over here! Hahahaha!” I found myself laughing.  Against my better judgement, I was losing myself in this surreal experience.

 

Saryn was getting noticeably irritated, as it shed its skin and pulled itself behind some tall boxes to recuperate.  Unfortunately, it was difficult for me to tell which was the real Saryn, so I just Slash Dashed one of them.  It was a small success, as it just melted into nothingness -- the decoy.  The real Saryn, having dropped the data mass it was carrying, leveled a Hek shotgun to my exposed flank.  With a glance at it, I grinned and teleported into the hallway that directly connects to the room I was just in.  The hallway was brimming with Infested, where I drew their attention with gunfire and sprinted back to the room that Saryn was still in.

 

“Look here, Tenno; some equally hideous monsters to hasten your demise! Hahaha!” I proclaimed as I teleported to the other side of the room.  Infested flooded into the area, a combination of Chargers, Toxic and Disruptor Ancients.

 

Having trouble deciding who to shoot first, Saryn eventually decided on the incoming Infested.  Its Hek blew away four of them with ease before needing to reload.  If I had been hit by that, I definitely would’ve felt it.  There were several more Infested, but I wanted to keep them alive for now.  I teleported behind the Saryn as it readied another volley.

 

“Turn your back on me, will you?  Hahahaha, foolish Tenno!” I shouted as I swung my Cronus at it and struck it across its back once more.  Its shields have yet to fall, however..

 

Saryn attempted to roll out of the fight to recharge its shields, but one of the Disruptor Ancients was faster, striking Saryn and sapping its shields dry.  The Toxic Ancients swarmed around the Saryn, quickly felling it with their combined poisonous auras.  With a smile on my face, I decided that enough was enough, and Slash Dashed the remaining Ancients into the afterlife.  Proudly, I grabbed the data mass before stepping over the fallen Saryn, who was looking up at me with what I gathered was hatred.

 

“You fought well, all things considered, but you will not find your warrior’s death here,” I said, grasping it by its neck with my free hand while simultaneously keeping it alive with the emergency health ducts in my gauntlet.  “You are coming with me.”

 

With that, I teleported back to my ship, Saryn and data mass in tow.  The feeling of victory that had forsaken me for what felt like eternity, was intoxicating.

 

Chapter 4: Breaking the Ice

 

 

“What do you mean, ‘keep it here for now’?!” I growled, slamming my fist on the control panel of my cockpit.

 

“Just what I said, I need you to keep that Tenno alive and under your supervision until I finish preparations on my end.  It shouldn’t be more than twenty-four hours, forty-eight max,” the annoying woman replied matter-of-factly.  I could practically see her rolling her eyes, despite the comms being audio only.

 

“Forty-eight hours alone with this thing?!” I shouted, disgusted at the mere thought of it.  “Why didn’t you finish preparations before you sent me?”

 

“To be perfectly honest, I didn’t expect you to succeed so smoothly on the first attempt.  I had another Tenno or two on the list already in the event that you failed initially,” she admitted in a slightly guilty tone.  “Your performance shot things days ahead of schedule.  You should be happy!”

 

“Happy?” I muttered.  “Because of this, I’m stuck with this-this monster in my ship for forty-eight hours!  My ship isn’t equipped to support prisoners; the Tenno doesn’t even have proper restraints!”

 

Throughout the conversation, I had kept one eye on the pacified Saryn.  It was simply kneeling in one corner of the room, probably listening in.  Stripped of its weapons, having no energy left in its warframe to fuel its powers, and still wounded from the earlier battle, it was essentially harmless so long as I kept my guard up; perhaps it knew its current situation and deigned to remain silent and obedient.  Tch, as if.

 

“You worried it might try something, Firstborn?” she said condescendingly.  “Quit whining and man up; I shouldn’t take more than twenty-four hours to finish the preparations.  Why don’t you get acquainted with your spoils until then?”

 

“Listen here, you-!” Before I could finish, the comms disconnected.  “Damn, I really hate that woman!”

 

Spinning around in my chair, I stared at the Saryn for the first time since the battle on the Infested ship.  It hadn’t moved a muscle since it regained the ability to do so, I suppose that means it’s meditating.  To an uninformed third party, it might as well be a decorative statue.  However, despite how passive it looks now, all I see is a mass-murdering, soulless abomination.  Just kneeling there, waiting for a chance to attempt an escape.

 

“Hmph, let’s take a look at your weapons,” I muttered to myself as I moved towards the weapons rack where I hung its gear.

 

Grabbing the Hek shotgun first, I gave it a glance over.  This weapon was incredibly powerful, and extensively modified for maximum killing potential.  Without the proper tools, I couldn’t tell what kind of mods it sported, but my estimated guess would be damage upgrades and multishot functionality.  Shouldering it, the gun was a bit heavy, but not enough to affect accuracy.  Indeed, I definitely would’ve been fatally wounded if the Saryn shot me with this point blank.  

 

Next was its Viper, which was more or less the same.  Damage mods with multishot, along with ammo clip increases.  Aiming down its sights, it was easy to tell that this weapon wasn’t meant for long range combat.  Combining that with the shotgun would normally be a poor decision, but the Saryn was in an Infested ship, so it was actually optimal.  It’s a shame the Saryn wasn’t carrying a pair, I’ve seen tenno use Twin Vipers with devastating results.  Not that it would have helped her in the fight, though.

 

Moving on to her Dual Ethers, it was clear as day that they were modified to the brim.  Visually sporting all three elements simultaneously, that told me all I needed to know about these swords.  Taking hold of them and swinging them around, I felt myself nod in approval.  Incredibly light, with blades equally sharp, I liked these swords.  If anything is to be said about the Saryn, it has fine taste in weaponry.  Speaking of which, as I turned to glance at it, I noticed that it was now looking at me.

 

“What?  You got something on your mind, monster?” I asked, walking towards it with its swords still in-hand.

 

It glanced, albeit very briefly, at its swords before returning its stare back to me.  Silent as ever, I see.

 

“Something about your Blades?  You think I’m going to use them on you?” I continued to ask rhetorically, leveling one of the Blades against the Tenno’s neck.  “You’re not important.  You’re not special.  Nobody would miss you.  Nobody would cry for you.  Nobody would even realise you died.  I could decapitate you right now, and the worlds will keep on spinning as if nothing happened.  Let me tell you, as much as I’d like to cut you up into pieces for staining my sanctuary with your vile presence, I will not.”

 

The Saryn remained motionless, staring at me through its faceless mask.  For some reason, it frustrated me.

 

“‘Why,’ you may ask?  Because I have something you lack, something all Tenno clearly lack.  You know what it is?” I said, withdrawing the Blade from its throat before pointing at my chest.  “Honor.”

 

The Saryn looked surprisingly agitated, if only judging by its clenched fists.  Did I strike a nerve?  Come to think of it, I’ve never seen a Tenno display emotion of any kind.  I moved to place the Blades back on the weapon rack, keeping an eye on the Saryn to ensure it doesn’t try anything.  Shortly after, I returned to standing in front of it, crossing my arms.

 

“What?  Are you upset that I spoke the truth to you?  I saw what you Tenno do with my own eyes.  Does murdering civilians seem honorable in your twisted view?” I inquired, my hatred bubbling to the surface as I closed my eyes for a moment to sigh and calm myself.

 

When I opened my eyes again, I saw an Ether Blade held against my neck.  When did it move?  Looking over to where the Saryn was kneeling before, I saw it begin to melt into a familiar looking goop.  A damn decoy!  Well, if it wanted to kill me, it probably would have done it by now, so what’s it waiting for?  Immediately after I thought that, text started to appear on the side of my HUD where video comms usually are.

 

Stalker, Hunter of Tenno, you are the least valid to question our honor, the text stated, I will suffer no more of your lies.

 

Did this Tenno just.. talk to me?  No no, that’s just too impossible; Tenno never speak to any but each other.  Are the Lotus communicating to me through this Saryn in an attempt to confuse me?  No, that’s not technically possible, the Saryn doesn’t have enough energy left in it to fuel a decoy and critical systems both.  It shouldn’t be able to send out or receive long range comms.  So that just leaves the first option.

 

“Sorry, but if you wanted to kill me, you should’ve done it when you had the chance,” I replied before teleporting behind it to strike it with my fist.

 

The Saryn must have anticipated that, as it whirled around and slashed the front of my helmet, forcing me to recoil and distance myself.  This monster just screwed my helmet over, now I can’t see anything out of it.  With a growl, I ripped my helmet off and threw it to the side before preparing to meet the Saryn’s next attack.  However, the attack never came.  The Saryn remained motionless, facing me with one of its Ether swords drawn.  This would’ve been grounds for a duel, but instead, the Tenno formed a loose defensive stance and started slowly backing away from me.  It also shook its head at me for a moment.

 

This went from a fight to something rather bizarre.  Every time I took a step toward the Saryn, it took a step back.  The process continued until its back was up against the wall.  Unsheathing my Cronus, I leveled it at the Saryn.

 

“What’s the matter?  What happened to ‘silencing my lies?’”

 

Even if the Tenno was inclined to answer me, it had no way of doing so now that it disabled my helmet and, specifically, my comms device.  I waited half a minute for the Tenno to make a move, but it just continued to hold a defensive stance.  My patience running out, I swung my Cronus at the Saryn.  It blocked my strike, at the expense of losing its grip on its Ether Blade with the Blade falling to the floor.  That’s when I knew this Tenno wasn’t fighting seriously anymore, for some reason.  I swiftly struck the Saryn’s head with the hilt of my Cronus, knocking it out.

 

With a sigh, I moved to retrieve my helmet, the auto-repair process kicking in already.  First thing that was restored was the comms, so on a whim I decided to check if the Tenno actually did say anything during the last couple of strange minutes.  Slipping my helmet on, I saw a large paragraph of text, most of which is the same line stated over and over again.

 

Stalker is real!  Stalker exists!  Stalker is real!  Stalker exists!

 

Chapter 5: Nightmares come to Life

 

 

Locking my helmet into its place on the armor stand so it can repair itself properly, I sat myself down in my chair and stared at the unconscious Saryn with a sigh.  The fact that it just tried to kill me was the last thing on my mind.  All I could think about was what it meant by those ramblings.  Did it not believe that I was real?  Was I just a hallucination up to a certain point?  The situation made very little sense to me, but I tried to piece it together regardless.

 

“It only started acting intimidated after I had removed my helmet,” I pondered.

 

Surely the Saryn has suffered worse wounds that those our battle gave it, so it can’t be because it was delirious from its wounds.  The lack of energy wouldn’t affect its mental state, but it kicked its warframe beyond its limits when the Tenno deployed that decoy; I made doubly sure that the Saryn wasn’t equipped with an Energy Siphon beforehand, so it didn’t regenerate its energy.  Did the overdrive affect its neural sensors somehow?

 

“Of course, its neural sensors are already unreliable.  Whatever it saw me as, that illusion was shattered the second my helmet came off, apparently,” I thought aloud, spinning around in my chair to face out the window.  “Question is, why?”

 

Speculation was all I could do without knowing all the details.  What made the Saryn believe that I was a hallucination?  What made it doubt my existence?  Did someone important tell her that, and if so, who?  Was it just a rumor passed around among the Tenno?  Was I just a scary ghost story to them?

 

“That can’t be, my body count is too high to be just a scary story,” I said to myself.  “So that just leaves the first option; and there aren’t many people the Tenno would believe straight out, which leaves just one suspect.”

 

The Lotus.  Lotus told the Tenno that I didn’t exist, that I was just a hallucination.  How did she convince them?  Did she pin the deaths of my previous targets on others like the Grineer or Corpus?  What about the witnesses, those who saw me cut down their squadmate right before their eyes?  Did the Lotus convince them that they all were seeing the same hallucination?  With their influence over the Tenno, that might actually make sense.

 

“Now, what reason would the Lotus have for convincing the Tenno that I don’t exist?” I asked myself.  “To bolster their morale and erase their fear?  Had it really gotten to such a level?”

 

It’s possible I might’ve been patting myself on the back, but if the Tenno’s fear of me had dug so deep into their bones that it affected their performance on a mission, I couldn’t help but smirk.  Still, the Tenno who were slain by me still fought back against me, so that doesn’t explain why this Saryn was so afraid of me that it couldn’t even keep a hold of its sword.  It could’ve been any number of things, but the Tenno are bred for combat; they don’t exactly freeze up easily.

 

“Could it have been the shock of discovering the truth?  Could it-”

 

How.. how are you real? a line of text appeared on one of my consoles in the cockpit.

 

With a quirk of the eyebrow, I glanced back to see the Saryn gradually sitting upright.  It must have realized I can’t tell what it’s saying without my helmet on.  Swinging around halfway so I could see both the Saryn and the console, I crossed my arms.

 

“Have a nice nap?” I asked sarcastically.

 

You are not supposed to be real, it ignored my sarcasm.  You are just an illusion, a nightmare of a weak mind.

 

“I assure you, I’m very real, and I got a couple of questions for you, Tenno,” I began, not giving it a chance to retort.  “Let’s start with the most important: what made you think I didn’t exist?”

 

I am not obligated to answer any of your questions, it stated right off the bat.

 

“Listen here, we have to spend the next twenty to forty hours together like this, and I’m going to get my answers one way or another,” I replied, sighing after it remained silent.  “Let me tell you what I think then: the Lotus lied to you.”

 

It is no surprise the Hunter of Tenno would think that.

 

“Think about it, why would you have acted the way you did if there wasn’t some shock factor?  I don’t think the shock came from my confirmed existence so much as the fact that whoever told you that information lied to you,” I continued.  “Even worse, you believed it without question.”

 

The Lotus has never lied to us.  They never.. lied to us.. It was easy to tell that Saryn was struggling.

 

“They lied to you about me,” I emphasized.  “They lied about the Tenno that I killed.  They lied about what the witnesses of those killings saw.  By doing so, they dishonored the memories of the fallen as well as the confidence of the witnesses, and you accepted it as truth without so much as a single ‘why?’.”

 

Silence.  You are attempting to deceive me..

 

“Oh for-” I muttered, standing up and moving to crouch in front of it before grabbing the chin of its mask with one hand and forcing it to look at me.  “Look at my face!  I know you can see it!  You know I am real!  I am the living ‘nightmare’, proof that the Lotus lied to you!  If you dare call yourself a warrior, open your eyes!”

 

Staring into its faceless mask as if to bore holes into it, I released my grip on its chin.  Not taking my eyes off it, I stood up and proceeded to sit down in my chair again.  Saryn’s head dropped slightly for several seconds, probably trying to digest the situation.  When it looked back up to me, I glanced back at the console.

 

I understand.  For some reason, the Lotus lied to us about you.  What of it?

 

“I wanted to open your mind to the idea that the Lotus does lie to you.  My existence isn’t the only thing they lied to you about.  Do you know what neural sensors are?”

 

Of course I do.  What does that have to do with anything?

 

“What if I told you that the things you think you see, don’t coincide with reality?”

 

What?

 

“For example, what did you see me as when I wore my helmet?  Did I look anything like I do now?  Or did I look like some soulless, evil presence straight out of your darkest dreams?” the Saryn remained silent, so I continued.  “I’m willing to bet the latter.  Now let’s hypothesize: I’m now a Corpus civilian, what do you think you would see me as?”

 

A civilian? its statement exhumed uncertainty.

 

“No.  You would see me as a soldier, someone you would kill on sight without a second thought.  You want to know how I know that?” I asked, bracing myself for Saryn’s reaction.  “I saw a squad of Tenno, a Rhino and two Excaliburs, gun down dozens upon dozens of civilians in the comfort of their own living quarters as they begged and cried out for mercy; it was like they were shooting fish in a barrel.”

 

No.  No, you are lying.  No Tenno would ever resort to such blatant disregard for their honor!

 

“I can acquire video evidence if you want it.  I was there when it happened.  It was difficult for me to accept as well, believe it or not.”

 

What proof do you have to validate these claims?

 

“None at the moment.  That’s why you’re here,” I replied.  “My informant is going to examine your armor and determine whether that theory is actually true.  If it is true, then things are going to change drastically, and very quickly.”

 

I see.  I am reluctant to believe you, but if this is for the good of the Tenno, then I will comply for now.

 

“Good.  Now, you probably should get some rest before then.  We have a long time to wait,” I suggested in finality, spinning back around in my chair to face out the window again.

 

I have a question of my own, the line of text ran across the console.

 

“What is it?” I asked, leaning back as my gaze wandered out the window.

 

Why are you, a Hunter of Tenno with many of my kin’s blood on your hands, going through all this effort to help us?

 

That was not an easy question to answer.  Why was I really going through with all of this?  That annoying woman practically baited me into it when I was at my lowest point, but I could’ve left at any time.  Why am I staying?  A solid answer escaped me.

 

“When I figure that out for myself, I’ll let you know,” I replied.  “Now shut up and get some rest.”

 

Just as I was getting ready to try and relax, the comms on my helmet lit up.  Lifting myself up once again, I moved to take the helmet off it’s place in the stand and set it down on one of the consoles.

 

“Finally, I had been trying to reach you for a while now!  What happened to you helmet?” the annoying woman asked.

 

“Saryn got a little angry and bit me, but she’s calmed down now,” I replied, leaning back once more in my chair.

 

“Great.  Well, preparations are almost done, so it shouldn’t be more than a few hours.  I told you I.. wait a minute,” she changed mid-sentence, “did you just call that Tenno a ‘she’?”

 

My eyes gradually widened as her words soaked in.  Did I really just do that?  What the hell is wrong with me?

 

Chapter 6: One Thing After Another

 

 

Sleep was not an easy thing to come by with a Tenno less than several meters behind me, but at some point I managed to fall asleep.  Life was cruel, however, as I was woken up by a strong force slamming the back of my chair.  Looking behind me, I saw the Saryn standing far too close for comfort, almost directly behind me.  Did she just kick my chair?  She pointed towards my helmet, which was glowing to signal an active comms connection.  Oh, I see.

 

“It’s amazing how heavy you’re able to sleep with that Tenno in the same room as you,” the annoying woman spoke in a chiding tone, “and by ‘amazing’, I mean ‘amazingly foolish.’”

 

“Have you finished your preparations yet?” I asked, ignoring her remarks that I knew were true.

 

“That’s what I’m contacting you for.  I just finished and was waiting on you.”

 

“Alright then, send me the coordinates,” I replied, preparing the ship for travel.

 

“We’re on the clock, so just sit there for a second.”

 

“What?  What the he-” I started to retort to her usual vagueness before I was cut off.

 

Shortly after I said that, I found myself in what seemed to be a Corpus facility -- though it looks more like a laboratory than a security base-- with Saryn standing beside me.  The room itself was moderately sized and styled just like any other Corpus facility, with everything being centered around a warframe mold in the center.  Numerous wires and cords surrounded the mold, all connected to various machines and servers.  Back on track, judging by the remains of black smoke dissipating into the air, we must have teleported here.  That woman must have somehow teleported us here, because I sure didn’t.

 

“Welcome to Warframe Research and Development facility #3134!  Previously owned, maintained, and operated by the Corpus!” chimed in the annoying woman’s voice from somewhere in the room.

 

“Warframe R&D, huh?” I responded less than enthusiastically, suppressing the myriad of questions that I eagerly yearned answers to about this woman.  “Strange, I would figure they’d have a place like this under heavy guard.”

 

“They did, that’s part of why I needed some prep time,” she responded, sounding as if she were standing in front of me.  “I’ll have you know I worked double time to get everything ready as soon as possible, so I expect some appreciation.”

 

“Right, let’s just plug Saryn in or however you’re going to scan her,” I replied, squinting my eyes and trying to see the shimmer of an active cloak; I knew she was only a few meters from me, but it appeared that there was nothing there but air.

 

“‘Her’.. right.  Bring it over to the mold there and get it locked in,” she said in a slightly dissatisfied tone.

 

“You heard her,” I nodded Saryn in the direction of the mold.

 

Saryn promptly walked over to the mold and gradually fit herself in without a word.  Surprisingly, I guess she was serious when she said she’d comply.  I walked over and stood next to the mold, proceeding to lock Saryn into place.  Shortly after, I saw one of the nearby consoles on the opposite side of the mold light up as if it was running itself.

 

“Plug in the cords and we’ll be good to go,” spoke the woman’s voice from the direction of the console.

 

“Tch, you’d think one of the most technologically advanced races in the solar system would be more advanced than this,” I muttered as I fiddled with the cables and eventually plugged a few in.  “I’m a warrior, not a technician.”

 

“Quit whining and hurry up, we’re still on borrowed time here,” she cracked the whip, still on the console.

 

“Finished, I hope,” I replied as I plugged the last few cables into their respective sockets on the edge of the mold.

 

“Great, time to get some answers,” she enthusiastically replied, finishing her work on the console.

 

There was a strong hum as the machinery came to life and power flowed to and from the mold.  The console was alight with dozens of lines of data, so much that I couldn’t hope to keep up with it.  The woman, comparatively speaking, was blissfully silent as she -- I assumed -- kept an eye on the console.  Personally, I had no idea how long it would take and if the woman did, she didn’t say anything.

 

“That should just about do it for the scan, which confirms the first part of my theory,” she said, typing away on the console.  “There is a virus firmly planted inside this Tenno’s systems that directly changes the data that arrives from the neural sensors.”

 

“Well, fantastic,” I sighed.  “So, can you eliminate it?”

 

“Would you be surprised if I said yes?” she asked in response.  “It looks like there isn’t a whole lot in the way of security around it.  I’m guessing that the Lotus didn’t expect anyone to ever be able to find it, let alone consider whether or not it existed at all.”

 

“I’m reluctant to believe that the Lotus would be so careless when pulling something of this scale.  There surely must be something there in case a Tenno notices it, or one of them are captured by the Grineer or Corpus.”

 

“You really think the Tenno would ever question the Lotus?  If they found it, they’d just get a pat on the head from Lotus and told not to worry about it,” she spat out with contempt, still typing away on the console.  “Also, while they both have great minds among them, neither the Grineer nor the Corpus would notice it; they would just think it’s part of the system, that it was designed that way.  Why?  They’ve simply never seen a warframe’s systems working normally without the virus already implemented.”

 

“So, what you’re saying is that the virus is injected very early on, essentially,” I added, noting the implication that she worked with warframe technology before the virus.

 

“Yes, as in right-out-of-the-cryopod early.  Lotus probably has the newly freed Tenno go through some ‘initiation’ or whatever, where they inject the virus while the Tenno is still confused and oblivious to everything around it,” she explained.  “That’s what I would do, anyway.”

 

“I see, how clever,” I muttered, crossing my arms.  “So, that begs the question on how you learned about it.  In fact, there’s a lot of questions I have that demand answers at this point.”

 

“All in due time, Firstborn, all in due time,” she stonewalled me.  “I’m almost finished removing the virus.”

 

“Clearly you’re able to multitask, and I’m tired of being led around by the nose, so we’re going to have a conversation here,” I persisted.  “Starting with-”

 

The console beeped briefly, popping out a tiny cartridge.  The cartridge seemingly started levitating as the woman picked it up and held it out to me.  When I didn’t move to take it, the woman spoke again.

 

“This is a program that will kill the virus in any warframe it connects with.  It might be useful to have on-hand,” she explained.

 

“Thanks,” I replied, using one hand to take the cartridge and another hand to grab the invisible arm that was holding it, “but we’re not leaving until I get some answers.”

 

Suddenly, the cloak that was hiding the woman started to dissipate.  My eyes widened in confusion as the cloak quickly evaporated.  This is some terrible joke.

 

“What the..” the words escaped my throat involuntarily.

 

Standing before me was an anatomically female version of my armor.  The colors, the design, the helmet, everything was exactly the same as the armor I was wearing.  The difference was that she was shorter than me by about a head.  Looking down at where I grabbed her, our gauntlets were perfect matches.  It was like I was looking into a mirror, except if I wasn’t a man.

 

“Just call me Stalker” she said innocently with a tilt of her head.

 

Stalker.. has a Stalker? Saryn’s text appeared in my HUD.

 

Chapter 7: New Prey, Neoteric Hunter

 

 

“You’ve got a lot of explaining to do,” I said to the mirror image, female version of myself, releasing my grip on her forearm.

 

“We don’t have a lot of time, unlock the Tenno,” she replied, moving to another console and typing something.

 

“You can’t brush this off now, I demand an explanation,” I retorted as I unlocked Saryn from the mold, allowing her to stand upright and stretch her limbs.

 

“Then ask what you will,” she responded, not taking her eyes off the console.

 

“How did you get that armor?  Is it an exact copy of mine?” I started throwing out questions.  “And why in the world does it look exactly like mine, too?”

 

“I built it myself, for starters, based off some blueprints that your previous employers were trying to piece together.  As for abilities, it’s not a warframe meant for fighting.  It’s mostly used for stealth, hacking, and infiltration; thusly, it comes with handy powers such as flawless stealth, enhanced computational software, and long range teleporting that can go about twice as far as yours as well as carrying two or three humanoids with me,” she explained.  “Design-wise, I perfected it by studying your armor in various postures: when you weren’t wearing it, when you were, when you were fighting in it, and when you got wounded wearing it.  I guess you could say I like your fashion sense.”

 

‘Stalker’s Stalker.’  Love blooms even on the battlefield, it seems, Saryn chimed in with stinging sarcasm.

 

“Shut up,” I cast a glance at the Saryn before turning my attention back to ‘Stalker.’  “Is that why you called yourself ‘Stalker’ just now?  Because you stalked me?”

 

“It’s a rather apropos title, don’t you think?” she replied with a brief pause before continuing to type on the console.  “The other reason, is that looking and acting like the Tenno’s most feared enemy can get one into pretty interesting places among the Corpus and Grineer.  How did you think I was able to learn everything about you ever since your first assassination?”

 

“My first assassination?  How do you know about that?” I asked curiously.  “Only the Ruling Sisters and the squad of Tenno at the site could have known about that.”

 

“That’s enough questions, I think.  We’ve still got business here we need to finish in time,” she abruptly ended the conversation.  “Now that we know that the virus is real, that makes the Lotus an ever larger threat than they were before.”

 

“Right,” I replied, suppressing my annoyance, “because they’ve got the wool pulled completely over the Tenno’s eyes.  They can order the Tenno to do whatever the Lotus wishes, and the Tenno would do it without hesitation; even if such orders involved killing innocents.”

 

“Exactly, which is why you need to kill them all before they step up their game,” she stated as if it was the easiest job in the world.

 

“Oh yeah, let me just charge into the Lotus’ HQ and chop ‘em up, no big deal.”

 

“I didn’t say you were ready yet.  There’s an army of Tenno to consider followed by the Lotus’ personal guards,” she added.  “As you are now, you wouldn’t stand a chance.  That’s why, we’re going to give your armor a little overhaul.”

 

“I don’t know how I feel about you messing around with my armor,” I replied disconcertingly.

 

“That overclocked control module I sent you worked wonders, didn’t it?” she asked with a huff, finished typing whatever she was typing in the console.  “Have a little faith in me.  You’ll love this.”

 

The lights in the room grew brighter as a large cylindrical container lowered from the ceiling and hovered over the warframe mold in the center of the room.  Does she want me to get in that?  Restraining myself never sat well with me, much less so with Stalker at the helm.

 

“Now, when you said a ‘little overhaul’, what exactly-”

 

“Quit being a baby and get in there,” she cut me off, ushering me to hurry up.

 

With a sigh, I walked over and proceeded to lock myself into the mold.  Shortly after, with a thumbs up from Stalker, the container lower further and enclosed the mold completely.  Naturally, there were no interior lights to illuminate the container, so I couldn’t even see what was coming.  I heard some machinery moving around, sounding as if it was moving something rather large.  It was then that I saw a small, blue flame light up directly in front of me.  Held aloft by a robotic mandible, it also managed to light up what appeared to be the front piece of a chassis.  Wait a minute..

 

“This is going to hurt, isn’t it?”  I muttered in resignation.

 

“Yeah, probably,” replied the muffled voice of Stalker from outside the container.

 

Bracing myself, I grit my teeth as the fusion cutter began systematically fusing parts of my chassis to the new chassis.  The pain was excruciating as was the immense heat, but my pride was on the line, so I managed to keep from screaming.  After taking what felt like an hour, the fusion cutter moved on to my arms.  The pain wasn’t as bad there, as it didn’t take as long to finish whatever it was doing.  However, then it moved on to my face.

 

“You better hope I’m dead when I get out of here, Stalker, or I swear I’ll-!” I attempted to yell, but immeasurable pain pushed me beyond the edge, causing me to black out.

 

Awakened by a sharp pain all around my body, I was grateful to see that I had yet to leave the container.  My pride was safe.  That aside, the fusion cutter was nowhere to be seen and I heard no machinery moving around.  In fact, I saw light slowing entering the container.  Did I wake up just as the process was ending?  What impressive timing!  As the container fully raised itself over the mold, I could see both Saryn and Stalker standing there.

 

“Wow, take a look at you!” Stalker said, waving her arms towards me in a grandiose fashion.  “The new and improved, Firstborn Prime!”

 

“Prime?” I asked, looking around my body for gold plating but finding none.  What I did notice, however, was that I looked very, very different.

 

“Have a look at yourself,” she suggested, pointing towards my reflection off one of the walls.

 

It was clear that black smoke still seeped off of my armor, but it did so in a way that made the smoke look like spikes rising off my shoulders.  The gauntlets themselves look thicker and more heavily armored while the fingers are now pointed on the tips and a red light is centered on the back of both my hands.  My helmet lost its front design, replaced instead with two little red lights one atop the other on the right side of its front and a design etched into the lower half that looked like an array of bared canine teeth in the right light.  Raised spikes also now jutted out the back end of my helmet, almost in the shape of some form of crown or head dress.  My chassis and greaves look to have armor plating on them, with my knee guards now being spiked at the top and thickened with armor plating.  Apparently, I also now sport a black waist cape that covers the rear of my greaves down to my boots.

 

“Wow..” I muttered.  “I’m really not feeling this skirt thing.”

 

“Don’t blame me, this warframe was designed collaboratively by the Grineer and the Corpus,” Stalker responded.  “Designed to replace you, as a matter of fact.”

 

“So that’s why it feels a lot.. thicker, than my previous armor,” I muttered, getting a good look at the new armor.  “Can’t we do something about this half-skirt?”

 

“Why bother?  It really completes the look that armor gives you,” she shrugged off my concerns.  “Besides, it’s just as maneuverable as your old one.  They wouldn’t dare sacrifice efficiency for intimidation factor.”

 

“I’ll get used to it, I suppose,” I grumbled in discontent.

 

“Good, because we still need a plan to get through an army of Tenno to get to the Lotus,” she continued.  “You may be far more powerful now, but you’re just one man.”

 

Actually, I might be able to assist with that, Saryn said to me.

 

“Assist us?” I asked in disbelief.  “You are aware of what we’re planning to do, right?”

 

As is turns out, you were correct.  The Lotus has made a mockery of us, and dragged out honor through the mud for their own gain.  I value loyalty to my people and our own traditions over loyalty to the Lotus.  I want vengeance, she explained.

 

“And how do you plan to do that?” I inquired with no small amount of surprise.

 

“What?  Are you actually talking to that Tenno?” Stalker asked confusedly.  “What’s it saying?”

 

Let me take you to my clan.  To our dojo.

 

Chapter 8: Into the Lion's Den

 

 

“Now, I’ve put up with a lot of terrible ideas,” I began to reply to Saryn, “but walking right up and kicking the hornet’s nest is crossing the line.”

 

You need only reveal yourself to them as you did to me.  Explain your intentions, and they will listen, she continued.

 

“What’s stopping them from attacking me on sight the second I enter your dojo?”

 

“If that Tenno is suggesting what I think it’s suggesting,” Stalker interjected, “then I don’t think you need to worry about the Tenno trying to kill you once you’re there.”

 

“What makes you say that?”

 

“Well, you look vastly different than you did before, aside from the black and red,” she responded.  “Maybe they won’t see you the same way as they did before.”

 

“Perhaps, or perhaps they’ll see me as something even worse,” I added, nodding towards my reflection.  “Even I can tell that I look darker than before.”

 

Either way, you will not need to worry about being assaulted.

 

“Again, how are you so sure of that?” I insisted.

 

What was it your Stalker said?  ‘Have a little faith in me,’ she replied.

 

“You’re just going to have to accept it at that,” Stalker added, not letting me get a word in, “because we’re out of time.  We need to leave this facility immediately.”

 

“You’ve been implying that for a while now, yet you never said why,” I responded.

 

“The only way I could clear this facility in time was to initiate a base-wide alert stating that a Tenno squad was about to raid it.  The Corpus, putting the safety of their employees first, evacuated with all due haste.  By now, they probably noticed that somebody hacked their security systems and downloaded something very precious to them out of their database -- that armor you’re now wearing,” Stalker explained.  “By my calculations, they are rushing back here full speed to reclaim that armor.  Their dropships most likely already landed.”

 

“You know, you really ought to share those kinds of details earlier.”

 

“You never asked,” she retorted.  “Anyway, we’re going back to your ship for now.  Then you and the Tenno have a date with its clan.”

 

“Tch,” I clicked my tongue as Stalker forcefully teleported all three of us back to my ship.  “I don’t see how this armor is any superior to my old one.  I don’t feel any different.”

 

“Maybe not now, but you still need time to ‘settle in’ as it were,” she replied before turning to Saryn.  “You, go and set the ship’s coordinates to your dojo.”

 

“We’re flying in?” I asked, knowing it would be fruitless to voice my reluctance to let anybody but me fly my ship.  “That doesn’t seem very subtle.”

 

“We’re out of range of both our teleports, so we’re going to fix that,” she responded.  “Once we are in range, you two will teleport inside and get the party started.”

 

“And you?  What are you going to be doing?”

 

“I’ll be following, like always, in stealth just in case,” she said, easing herself into my chair.  “You won’t even know I’m there.”

 

“I’m not sure how I feel about that,” I muttered, turning to Saryn.  “How long will it take us to get there?”

 

Not long.  No time for a rest, she replied, with a dip of sarcasm as she went over to the corner of the ship and entered a meditative pose.

 

“I see,” I sighed, sitting down on my less comfortable med-station chair.

 

“By the way, Firstborn,” Stalker spoke up again, “concerning your gear, specifically your weaponry.”

 

“What about my gear?” I asked, slightly defensively.

 

“Well, there a couple of details you need to know,” she began.  “First off, you’re not able to use firearms with that armor.  Secondly-”

 

“What?!” I shouted.  “What do you mean I can’t?!”

 

“That warframe is designed for maximum melee killing potential.  It makes you faster, stronger just by itself; add to that your natural skill and strength, and the damage you can inflict in melee combat is astronomical.  However, the problem the Corpus and Grineer ran into was finding someone or something that could get into melee range of an opponent armed with a firearm.”

 

“Why didn’t they just design the warframe to be skilled with both melee and firearms?”

 

“A couple of reasons.  They noticed how you favor the use of your sword over your rifle anyway, that more often than not had the desired effect of both intimidation and lethality.  In their minds, if they could bolster the strength of your melee prowess to enormous levels, then it’d be a win-win.  I’m sure, further down the line, they would have implemented firearm support to make you the most deadly assassin known to history, but that ship sunk when your employment with them ended.  They simply couldn’t find anyone able to replace you, so that warframe was sealed up under the highest security for potential future use.”

 

“Hmm, and that’s why they want it back, I assume.”

 

“Who can say for certain?  They might just keep an eye on you, see how you perform in that armor,” she pondered.  “With all that said, you can hang up your Braton Vandal, since you can’t use it now.  There’s some things that need to be discussed about your Cronus, too.”

 

“Like what?” I asked, moving to the weapons rack and reluctantly hanging up my rifle before sitting down in my chair again.

 

“On its own, it’s too weak and outdated to maximize your warframe’s melee efficiency,” she explained.  “Luckily, that can be remedied relatively easily using one of your warframe’s functionalities.”

 

“I thought you said I needed time to get used to the warframe,” I replied, unsheathing and laying my Cronus across my lap.  “How am I supposed to utilize its powers right now?”

 

“This specific power is the primary functionality of the warframe that the rest of its powers are based off of.  You should be able to use it on your Cronus, at the very least,” she explained further.  “Test it out, try running your one or two of fingers down one of the flat sides of the blade.”

 

With a pinch of doubt, I began doing as she instructed, starting from the base of the blade and up.  What I saw, and partially felt, was my black smoke slowly swirling around the blade, gradually forming into a solid black mass as my fingers neared the end of the blade.  When my fingers reached the end, the entirety of the blade was covered in the blackness that used to be my smoke.

 

“Umbrakinesis,” Stalker answered before I could ask anything.  “The ability to control darkness.”

 

“I’ve never seen or heard of such a power,” I muttered, leveling out my Cronus and testing its weight.

 

“That’s because it’s an experimental power, developed specifically for that warframe.  As such, there’s no telling what you can do with that power.  I only know of that umbra-coating trick because it was mentioned in the blueprints,” she replied enthusiastically.  “That coating should increase the cutting power and durability of the blade tenfold.  It can even be extended further than the actual blade itself, try it.”

 

Curiously, I ran my fingers down the blade once more.  The same process happened again, the smoke from my shoulders moved and swirled around the blade, forming into the solid black mass inch by inch.  Once my fingers reached the end of the blade, I kept the same motion going for another few inches off the blade’s tip.  The smoke filled in the empty space and formed the black mass as if the blade was still there, even retaining the original shape of the blade.  Incredible, simply incredible.

 

“Theoretically, you could extend the length of your blade as far as physically possible for you.  The blade shouldn’t be a hindrance either, since darkness isn’t really a solid.  So, if you figure out how, you could fight in a tight space with a lengthy blade without worrying about the blade hitting anything but what you want it to hit.  Assuming the actual blade of the sword doesn’t hit anything.”

 

“Impressive, very impressive,” I remarked.  “That’s sure to come in handy.”

 

“Obviously, that’s not all it can do, so you’re going to have to get creative in order to learn what else it’s capable of.”

 

We are nearing the dojo, Saryn interjected, standing upright as she said so.

 

“We should be in range of the dojo now,” I relayed to Stalker.

 

“Good timing.  Alright, it’s showtime, Firstborn.  The sheath for your weapon is on your left hip, by the way,” she said when she saw me trying to resheath my Cronus onto my back.

 

“Right,” I replied, sheathing it the correct way, which also dispersed the blackness surrounding the blade.  “Let’s go.”

 

With Stalker cloaking herself ahead of time, she teleported the three of us into the entrance hall of the dojo.  I couldn’t help but look around the room, intrigued by unfamiliar architecture.  However, I didn’t have long to enjoy the scenery before one of the nearby Tenno -- a Frost  -- spotted me.  Within seconds, the entrance hall was flooded with Tenno of all sorts, all of them leveling their weapons at me.

 

“What’s the proper thing to say here, ‘I told you so?’” I rhetorically asked aloud, raising my hands in an attempt to show that I wasn’t there to fight.

 

That didn’t work at all, as every Tenno in that room -- save for the Saryn that was standing beside me -- opened fire at me.  Immediately, I teleported above and behind them.  Turning around, they were still aiming their weapons at me.  Clearly they were surprised at my reaction, but I wouldn’t think that’d stop them from trying to kill me.  It was then that I saw Saryn calmly making her way through the rest of the Tenno.  Stopping at my side, she turned to face the confused Tenno.  I assumed she was talking to them, judging by some of her hand movements.

 

Now, before they lose their patience, tell them why you are here, Saryn said to me after a moment.  Now was not the time to question how she alone was able to halt the mob of Tenno.

 

“Tenno, I know you have little reason to believe me,” I began, thinking up what to say on the spot, “but I come bearing a message you all must heed.”

 

They looked restless, ready to shoot me at the drop of a hat.  I still don’t know why both Saryn and Stalker thought this was a good idea.  The only one who’s risking life and limb here is me.  After trying to think of a way to shock them into possibly believing what I have to say, I came up with an idea that I hoped would work just as well as the first time.

 

“The Lotus are lying to you,” I spoke loudly, slowly removing my helmet and holding it against my side, “and I can prove it.”

 

Story continued here (Chapters 9-16)

 

Story continued even further here (Chapters 17-22)

 

Story continued EVEN FURTHER here (Chapters 23-Epilogue)

 

Side stories located here

Edited February 2, 2014 by Katakuna

[TheErebus.]

More. Now.

Want. More. NOW!

[Katakuna]

OP updated with the second chapter.  Also added spoilers to conserve space.

 

Second chapter is where things really start to get the ball rolling.  Hope y'all like it!

[CharlesSnippy]

This story, I like it. Another! *smashes keyboard*

[DellingrSG]

This is awesome!

[Katakuna]

Chapter 3 now in the OP.

 

Who's the lucky Tenno that gets to tangle with Stalker?  I hope I stayed true enough to the effect of that warframe's powers!

 

As always, hope y'all like it!

[lukkelose]

This is really awesome! Keep up the good work ^^!

[Katakuna]

Chapter 4 now in the OP.  Short one this time, because finals and exams and other time-sucking stuff.

 

♪ Stalker and Saryn sittin' in a tree, K-I-S-S-

 

Nah, they hate each other.  Or do they?  Probably.  Maybe?

 

Hope y'all like it!

[Katakuna]

With my newfound free time, Chapter 5 is now in the OP.

 

The explanation behind the "Stalker doesn't exist" belief!  Or how Stalker himself interprets it.

 

As always, hope you enjoy it!

[GratuitousLurking]

Dawww, Stalker isn't such a jerk after all. He's just a tinfoil-hat conspiracy theorist who's right for once.

[Katakuna]

Dawww, Stalker isn't such a jerk after all. He's just a tinfoil-hat conspiracy theorist who's right for once.

 

He's so misunderstood.

[Ghost333]

This...this thread. It is brilliant!
Type faster and lose no brilliance, my friend! Keep this thread rolling!

[Katakuna]

This...this thread. It is brilliant!

Type faster and lose no brilliance, my friend! Keep this thread rolling!

 

As you command, good sir!

 

Chapter 6 now in the OP!  Technical details abound, the Annoying Woman Mysterious Voice unmasked(?)!

 

As always, hope y'all like it!

[Katakuna]

(Almost) double whammy, chapter 7 now in the OP!

 

Things are heating up big time.  Also, in case you found my description in the story insufficient, I will put the inspiration for Stalker's new armor here:

 

 

As always, hope y'all like it!

[xxx7]

Just read chapter 1 "Fired"...Liked and followed. Very interesting and well written. =)

[Katakuna]

Chapter 8 now in the OP.

 

Explanations into just what Firstborn's new look is capable of, and his first impressions with Saryn's clan.  Will it go surprisingly smoothly?  Debatable.

 

As always, hope y'all enjoy!

[Iainius]

Great chapter, as always. And...Stalker Prime? Want...

 

Though I keep on picturing his sword as Ichigo's Bankai...

[Katakuna]

Great chapter, as always. And...Stalker Prime? Want...

 

Though I keep on picturing his sword as Ichigo's Bankai...

 

Thank you very much.

 

And in retrospect, that's where the idea came from in part.  It's been a while since I watched Bleach, though, so I couldn't for the life of me place where I saw it before.

[Katakuna]

Well crap, heh, the content is too long for the OP now. Guess I'll just link to this post instead.


Chapter 9: Trial by Fire

If one wants to see a Tenno truly shocked and confused, just show them irrefutable evidence that defies what they’ve taken as absolute truth. That lesson was something I learned in the seconds that followed after I removed my helmet. The mob of Tenno, previously dead-set on shooting me into oblivion, was in complete disarray. They were casting unsure glances at each other, lowering and raising then lowering their guns once more. It was quite a sight when it was just Saryn acting like that, but to see well over fifty Tenno acting the same way was a rare spectacle that I would forever treasure in my memory.

The confusion started dying down as the Tenno turned their attention to Saryn. Now that I delivered the shock factor, I guess that’s where she comes in to soften the blow. She started ushering them to another room. They kept a noticeably wide berth from me as they passed by. Once most of them were gone, Stalker appeared next to me out of thin air with a pat on the back.

“Perfectly executed, Firstborn. Couldn’t have done it better myself,” she praised me, the amusement on her face of having watched the whole scene was clear as day.

“Yeah, yeah,” I replied, shrugging off her hand from my back while slipping my helmet back on. “So now what? I’ve got to deliver a persuasive speech?”

“That would be my guess,” she responded with a slight huff. “Not like it should be that difficult; you’ve already blown their minds with your unmasking.”

I have gathered them in the dueling ring, announced Saryn as she reentered the room.

“‘Dueling ring?’ I suppose that means what it sounds like, huh,” I replied with a sigh.

Indeed. They demand a test of arms against the most skilled duelists in the clan, to ultimately judge whether your words are worth listening to, she explained, crossing her arms.

“It’s not that surprising,” Stalker added. “The Tenno are a warrior race, it only makes sense they decide important matters with duels.”

“Alright then, what warframes am I dueling?”

A Rhino, Ash, Trinity, and a Saryn, she listed.

“Hmm, alright, take me to the dueling ring. Let’s get this over with,” I replied with finality. “We have more important matters to attend to.”

With that, she led me and the invisible Stalker into the dueling ring. It was a fairly large room with a lowered arena in the center of the room. There were two sets of stairs of opposite sides of the ring, and four pillars marking the corners of the arena. Packed all around the arena were the waiting Tenno, with three of the four duelists waiting in the arena. The Rhino bore a large Fragor, the Ash bared his Fangs, and the Trinity unsheathed her Dark Sword. Saryn led me straight down into the center of the room, then she made her way over to the other three and stood next to them.

“You didn’t say that the Saryn I was fighting would be yourself,” I remarked.

You didn’t ask for specifics. Ready your sword, she retorted, unsheathing her Ether Blades.

“Don’t worry, I’ll be watching out for you,” Stalker whispered to me. “This is a great way to experiment with your umbrakinesis.”

“You don’t need to tell me,” I replied under my breath, unsheathing my Cronus and running my fingers down the blade and several inches further.

“Just don’t screw this up,” she whispered once more.

“Tch. Well, Tenno, you want a contest of arms?” I goaded, the darkness around my blade solidifying. “Then, come at me!”

Rhino swiftly adorned his Iron Skin before charging me with his Fragor. He’s bold, not waiting for his team. Does he not take me seriously? Hmph, I will correct that mistake. I wonder, if this darkness can coat an object, can it tear a coating off other objects? When the Rhino reached melee range, I teleported behind him. In the process, I took hold of his left arm and willed the darkness to shed his Iron Skin. My smoke temporarily engulfed him.

“I’ll tear that frail skin right off you!” I shouted as I made a tearing motion with the same hand, sending the fragments of his Iron Skin falling to the ground.

Rhino was surprised, which gave me an opening. Whirling around, my blade slashed across his now vulnerable back. The blackness that coated my blade tore right through his shields in one strike. Haha! Wait, I can’t get too cocky yet, but even I didn’t really expect that to work. The Rhino knelt on the floor, admitting his defeat. That strike must have done more damage than was visible to the naked eye.

Next up was the Ash and Trinity. Ash popped his smoke grenade and disappeared from my sight while Trinity cast her Link and charged me. She wouldn’t be so foolish to try something like that after what she saw me do to Rhino, so that must mean that Ash is covering her while he is invisible, waiting for me to leave an opening. Keeping my distance from Trinity, I began to think this through. Ash uses smoke to distort the light around him long enough for his opponent to lose sight of him. What if I unleashed a cloud of black smoke that enveloped everything around me for a short time? That might reveal his location, assuming he’s closeby. Deciding to work with that, I concentrated and let loose a large cloud of black smoke from my shoulders. Shortly after, I could see Ash directly behind Trinity, hurriedly attempting to remove my smoke from him.

“You can’t hide from me!” I shouted, teleporting behind Trinity while slashing, the strike connecting with the distracted Ash directly across his chest.

Wasting no time, I turned about and blocked Trinity’s incoming charged strike. Teleporting to her right side, I grabbed her arm and tore her Link off. She expected that, and moved to elbow me with her free arm. Ducking out of the way and regaining some distance, I saw that she was preparing to cast Blessing to rejuvenate herself and possibly her fallen allies. Obviously, I couldn’t let that happen, so I teleported forward and delivered a solid uppercut to Trinity’s chin, stumbling her. Following up with another slash of my sword to her gut, she knelt down in defeat.

“That just leaves you, Saryn,” I said as I turned to Saryn, who had been waiting patiently. “You think you can win round 2?”

While I fully believe in your mission, I will reclaim my honor taken from me on that Infested ship. Prepare yourself!

Without another word, she charged at me, coating her Ether Blades in poison. Taking a defensive stance, I fended off her flurry of blows. Removing the coating on her weapons wouldn’t help me much, and her decoy is useless here, so that leaves just straight up melee combat. I say ‘just’, but she is actually extremely skilled with those blades. Every one of her strikes are precise, swift, and strong. If I were wearing my old armor, she would surely outlast me in this situation. However, I’m not wearing my old armor.

Switching to the offensive was no easy task. Saryn left no openings in her relentless assault, which means I had to make one. Intentionally leaving myself open around my chest proved effective, as Saryn took the bait and slashed from below, intending to gut me. In order to break her assault, I had to confuse her, so I ducked down to almost avoid her strike. She managed to slash the left side of my helmet, which hurt like hell, but now she was wide open. With a low sweeping kick to knock her off balance a bit, I jumped up and proceeded on the offensive.

Now I have the advantage, and she knows it. I have to make sure to end this before she can find a way to take the initiative again. However, for her it was relatively easy; she just began to cast her ultimate power, forcing me to distance myself to avoid the blast. While I successfully avoided her toxic fumes, now we were on equal footing once more, standing twelve meters apart. Deciding that enough was enough, I shifted myself into the Iaido stance, keeping one hand on my sword and the other hovering several inches over it. This battle would be decided within the next five seconds. Saryn saw my intentions, and shifted into a defensive stance, probably planning to counterattack.

Lunging forward faster than I have ever moved before, time appeared to move in slow motion. Saryn was preparing to counterattack, but she was moving too slowly. There was no way she would be able to counter me in time. Crossing the distance in less than three seconds, I am now in melee range, close enough slash her and finish the battle. If one watched closely, my blade broke the sound barrier as it streaked through the air. It continued like that, over Saryn’s barely mistimed defense, only stopping less than an inch from her throat. The flow of time returned to normal, and I grinned with a tilt of my head.

“I win,” I said aloud, stepping back and sheathing my blade.

Yes. Yes you did. That is twice you have defeated me. Victory is yours, she replied, bowing her head for a brief moment before turning to the spectating Tenno and speaking to them.

“Stupendous performance, Firstborn. Absolutely astounding,” Stalker said from beside me, still invisible. “I knew tossing you into that warframe was a good idea.”

“Yeah well, even a broken clock is right twice a day,” I replied. “By the way, I figure that we’ll be needing to use that cartridge pretty soon.”

“Yes, I have it right here,” she replied, the cartridge appearing from nowhere. “Before you ask, I took it off you before the duel began, so you didn’t break it on accident.”

“You think I’m that careless?”

“That big scar on your brand new helmet says everything,” she retorted.

“You know that was necessary,” I responded, running my fingers along the aforementioned scar that extended from the bottom right of my helmet to the top left to confirm that it was there. “Besides, a visible scar like this one builds the intimidation factor this warframe was clearly going for.”

“Yeah, right,” she scoffed. “Looks like that Saryn is just about done talking to her clan.”

“I see now how she commands so much respect among her clan,” I remarked. “She is an excellent swordsman.”

“Don’t fall in love now,” Stalker jabbed. “Besides, something in that Tenno’s position should command respect.”

“Her position?” I inquired.

“Didn’t I tell you? That Saryn is the Warlord of this clan,” Stalker explained, as if I was already privy to that tidbit of information. “You know what it means when a Tenno Warlord bows its head, right?”

“What?” I asked calmly, though only because I was too surprised to shout.

The Tenno await your words, Firstborn.

Chapter 10: Birth of the Liberated

This occasion would actually be the first time I’ve ever needed to speak to a crowd. Having no experience will only add to this difficulty. The seed of doubt has been planted in their minds, and they’re willing to hear me out, but convincing them to actually believe me will probably take some effort. Backup was out of the question, too, as Saryn walked off to one of the unoccupied corners of the arena and Stalker silenced herself. The defeated duelists knelt in the other three corners of the arena. That just left me in the center. Well, here goes everything.

“Tenno, I want you all to envision something with me for a bit,” I began, thinking it up as I go. “You all wake up from cryosleep at the Lotus’ call. You undergo a brief training period to work out the kinks and get yourself officially initiated within the Tenno ranks. That is essentially standard procedure with every Tenno you awaken, yes?”

I didn’t really expect an answer. However, I saw out of the corner of my eye one Loki nod his head slightly. With a smirk, I continued.

“Well, that just by itself seems fairly innocuous, doesn’t it? There are worse ways to be woken up,” I derailed a bit, reliving personal experiences. “Anyway, after your initiation is done, you go out to fight for the survival of your race under the Lotus’ guidance. Now, being the honor-driven warriors that you are, you only attacking military targets: ships, bases, and the like. You would never willingly raid a civilian outpost, and if you did, you would never knowingly kill the civilians.”

After stating what was obvious to them, it was time to deliver the punchline. Bracing myself for whatever reactions they might have, I forged on.

“Now, I came here today to tell you all one simple thing that shatters all of that,” I said, breathing deep. “That is all a lie.”

The Tenno rightfully grew restless. That much was expected; anybody would behave as such after such a proclamation. However, none of them left the room, which I took as the all clear to carry on.

“Now, you might be thinking to yourselves: ‘what foolishness is this demon talking?’ I would not be standing before you if I couldn’t prove my claims,” I whipped out the cartridge as I said that. “On this cartridge is a program. A program that was created to kill a very specific virus. A neural sensor virus, capable of altering anything and everything that someone is supposed to see from a warframe. A warframe infected with that virus will not be able to tell the difference from, say, a soldier and a civilian. If you’ve ignored everything else I’ve said, you must listen to me now. This neural sensor virus has infected every single Tenno that has even been woken up by the Lotus!”

I get the feeling that if I hadn’t displayed my strength a couple minutes ago, the Tenno would be jumping me right now. They were visibly restless at my words. Nevertheless, I had to press on.

“I can even tell you how they do it. Right after you awaken from cryosleep, you are confused by everything happening around you. We’ve all been there before, it’s a normal reaction after having been sleeping for so long. Well, that works out perfectly for the Lotus, as they could inject the virus into you without you ever realizing it. They could probably even make you inject it yourselves by disguising it as an energy orb or whatever they have you pick up in training,” I explained.

This is good, they’re getting angry and perturbed. Whether that anger is directed at me has yet to be confirmed, but I sincerely hope it’s directed at the Lotus.

“You might be asking yourselves: ‘why? Why would the Lotus deceive us like this?’ Tenno, I wish I had a solid answer for you. What is certain, however, is that they want you to be at their beck and call. They want you firmly chained on their leash. They see your warrior code, your value for honor, and your loyalty to each other as liabilities. Thus, they squashed them all by striking at your ability to see things with your own eyes -- to judge things for yourself. After all, you would have no qualms about slaughtering civilians if they walked, looked, and acted like soldiers. Likewise, you would have no reason to fear me if you believed I was just a hallucination,” I spoke, removing my helmet once more. “I can assure you, Tenno, that I am very real. Just as you misperceived me, you have misperceived untold multitudes of civilians as soldiers. Who knows what else you all might think you see, when the reality is actually far different?”

The duelists that were previously kneeling down were standing menacingly. The rest of the Tenno, also, looked as if they were ready to go on a rampage at the drop of a hat. Just a little bit more..

“Now, I require some volunteers, to prove once and for all that I’m not spouting nonsense. I will plug this cartridge into your warframes, and the program will eliminate the virus in a matter of seconds,” I held out the cartridge. “It was already run on your Warlord, incase you think it will kill you or destroy your systems.”

The Rhino duelist stomped over to me. He shoved his arm at me, never ceasing his stare. With a nod, I plugged the cartridge into his artifact slot. The Rhino held his head with his free hand, looking as if he was instantly inebriated. I actually had to stifle a chuckle, lest I burst out laughing. Need to get a grip, this is the end all moment, I can’t stupidly ruin it. After several seconds, the cartridge popped back out. The Rhino took some steps back, looked me over once or twice, then turned and nodded to the rest of the clan.

The Tenno all came down one by one into the arena. The confirmation of both their Warlord and one of the best duelists in the clan was enough for them to give it a go, I suppose. Motioning Saryn over, I handed the cartridge to her as I put my helmet back on.

“They might be more comfortable if it’s you at the helm.”

Very well. I will take it from here, she responded, taking the cartridge from me and turning to her clan.

“Well, that wasn’t so bad,” I muttered to myself with a sigh as I moved to lean against one of the pillars.

“If anything, I can see why you were an assassin, not a politician,” Stalker spoke up, wisely remaining invisible.

“That speech exhausted me more than the duel,” I replied honestly, noticing that there were far more Tenno present than the fifty that were there originally.

“But hey, now you’ve sparked a rebellion within the Tenno,” she added. “You’ve got well over a hundred Tenno following you as opposed to the Lotus.”

“Don’t be ridiculous. They don’t follow me, and I have no desire to lead them,” I remarked. “We just have a common enemy now. When we slay that enemy, then we will go our separate ways.”

“Do you really believe it will be that simple?” she asked in a serious tone. “You sorely defeat this clan’s best fighters, you deliver that speech like you did, and the Warlord even bows its head to you, and you believe that you all will just ‘go your separate ways’?”

“That doesn’t mean they follow me,” I retorted. “They do not look to me as a leader.”

“Yeah, the Tenno of this clan follow their Warlord, that much is obvious,” she began. “However, who do you think that Saryn -- the Warlord of this clan -- follows, if not the Lotus?”

“She follows herself, to lead her clan down their own path, I assume,” I mused, crossing my arms.

“You’re really dense sometimes, you know that?” she jabbed with an exaggerated sigh. “Whatever, we still have other issues to address.”

“Indeed. We may have freed this clan, but there are tens of thousands of more Tenno in the solar system that are still blind to Lotus’ deception. We don’t have the time or manpower to visit each and every dojo. Then there are the ronin who don’t belong to a clan..”

I believe that may be easier than you think, Saryn interjected, walking over to us after having finished with most of the present Tenno.

“How’s that?” I inquired, standing up straight again.

Your message was broadcasted all across the Tenno network. We have received word from multiple clans of various sizes that they are on their way here as we speak, spreading the news as they go, she explained. They desire to join the Liberated.

“What? Liberated?” I asked rhetorically. I could practically feel the triumphant gaze coming from Stalker.

“So, poster-boy of the Liberated,” she began, leaning victoriously against me, “still think this is going to end as simply as you want?”

Chapter 11: Schism

Conflict plagued my thoughts as I watched more and more Tenno free themselves of the Lotus’ leash from my spot against one of the arena pillars. They had steadily been arriving over the past few hours now, more than I ever anticipated. That is not what’s bothering me, however. No, what doesn’t sit well with me is the fact that they expect me to lead them. Freeing these Tenno, my intention was never to gather them as an army under my command. The only reason I wanted them free was so they wouldn’t be in my way when I made my move on the Lotus. Yet here they gather by the hundreds -- spreading out over the entire dojo -- naming themselves the Liberated and acknowledging me as the Firstborn.

“Quit sulking, do you realize the significance of what is happening right now?” Stalker asked me from wherever she was around me.

“Yes, I can see it clearly, that is what troubles me,” I replied with a sigh. “They are gathering here, under the banner of the Liberated, as if preparing for war. I would be fine with that if I weren’t the one the Warlords looked to for leadership.”

“You know, I think you’re being rather ungrateful. Despite the known fact that you’ve got Tenno blood on your hands, the Warlords still place their trust in you. We must have taken the Lotus by complete surprise!”

“I suppose you have a point. I’m a warrior, an assassin, not a general. I have my doubts regarding my ability to lead men and women into battle,” I responded.

“Then leave that to those who are leaders, the Warlords,” she replied. “They see you as as the leader of the Liberated, but the Tenno are loyal to their clans and each other first and foremost. Soldiers who trust their commanders would follow them through Hell and back, so it would probably be for the best that you leave the commanding in battle to the Warlords.”

“I guess I’ll cross that bridge when I come to it. Not much I can do about it now.”

“That bridge might be closer than you think. Your speech was broadcasted across the Tenno’s entire network, so you not only attracted attention from the Tenno, but the Lotus as well,” she added in a more serious tone. “I imagine we’ll be hearing from them soon.”

Very soon, there are two squads of Tenno at the entrance who come bearing their Voice, Saryn informed as she walked up to us. They demand your presence.

“Right then, let’s go,” I said, standing upright and moving towards the entrance hall.

Making my way through the corridors packed with Liberated, I eventually arrived at the entrance hall with Saryn and Stalker in tow. There was roughly fifteen meters of empty space between the line of Liberated behind me and the squads of Tenno that just entered. An Excalibur Prime was at the head of the squads, staring intently at me as I came into view. They were armed, as were the Liberated, but nobody’s weapons were raised. Still, the tension was rightfully palpable. The Excalibur Prime raised one of his hands, which held a small device. The device shone and displayed a holographic image of the Voice of the Lotus, the woman with the purple headdress that covered all but her nose and mouth.

“I cannot begin to express my disappointment in you, Tenno,” she began in a cold, calculating tone. “Betraying your race and siding with a rogue who imitates a well known hallucination. I thought you were smarter than that.”

An imitation? Of course, if she can’t actually say that I exist in front of the Tenno, then she would say the closest thing to it and call me an imposter. Such a simple ploy, and yet I don’t actually have anything that can prove I’m who I say I am. Hmm, I am in a bit of a bind. Without physical evidence, there is little I can do to refute her claim that I am a fake. Regardless, I have to do something, lest the Liberated begin to doubt me themselves. A stupid idea entered my mind, and I rolled with it.

“Let me tell you something interesting, Lotus,” I began, crossing my arms. “I bet I could tell you everything you would ever need to know about the dozens of Tenno I’ve killed in the past. I could tell you how I brutalized a Nyx -- who had only come out of cryosleep a few days prior -- with my bare hands and stole her weapons to use for myself. I could tell you how I sliced a Frost in twain two days later with that Nyx’s Cronus. I could also tell you..”

One after another, I listed off every single Tenno I’ve ever killed. It was a rather lengthy list, but I wasn’t going to back down. Emphasis was necessary for shock factor. Vividly recalling every assassination like it happened only recently, I spared no detail. The silence in the room, despite that room being filled with kinsmen of the targets I killed, only strengthened my resolve. Finishing my list, I didn’t give anybody any time to retort.

“I assure you, I am who I say I am. I’m the living nightmare that haunted all Tenno’s dreams. I’m the one warrior in the entire solar system that taught the Tenno what it means to feel utter fear,” I continued, slipping off my helmet and letting it rest against my side. “However, I realized something as of late. All that time, all that Tenno blood I soaked my hands in, it was all for naught. The solar system is sick, and I was only treating the symptoms. The illness, what should have been my target the entire time, is you, Lotus. You who bloom among death and decay, are the reason why this solar system will never know peace. Go ahead and believe I’m an imitation, but I’m coming for you. We’ll see just how much of a fake I am then. Now be off with you, before I decide that the lives of a few blind Tenno aren’t worth saving!”

Waving my free hand as if to dust away garbage, I watched the holographic image of the Voice of the Lotus fade away. The squads of Tenno turned and exited the way they came, the Excalibur Prime staring at me with clenched fists until the very last second before exiting himself. Keeping my back to the Liberated, I wasted no time in taking advantage of this opportunity.

“Stalker, I want you to learn where that Tenno’s ship has been,” I muttered, knowing she was smart enough not to vocally answer in such a situation.

Turning around to face the Liberated, they were all staring at me. Their tension was expected. There was nothing I wanted to do more than teleport back to my ship. Whether I liked it or not, though, I had a responsibility to these Tenno. Firstly, for an explanation.

“Well, that’s the whole story laid bare, Tenno. Complete, untainted honesty to which there is not a whole lot I can add. I understand any hesitation or reluctance you might be experiencing right now, but-”

Saryn promptly walked up to me, forcing me to stop mid-sentence. Immediately after, she gave me a strong, unrestrained punch to the face. A punch like that from a woman like Saryn would hurt well enough alone, but add that to the fact that she’s wearing her warframe, and the pain was incredible. Yeah, I probably deserved that, but that didn’t make the blow against my cheek any softer. Returning my gaze to Saryn, she had her arms crossed, but it was less angry and more.. sassy.

I needed to stop you before you said anything I guarantee you would have regretted, she began. We have made our choice: we are not going back to the Lotus’ leash. The Liberated will fight at your side, so that we may have our revenge on the Lotus. Yes, the sins of your past are not easily forgiven, but redemption is not impossible.

“I appreciate it, really,” I replied, slipping my helmet back on. “The Tenno are not my enemy anymore, nor do I wish to fight them. However, there are still blind Tenno out there, as well as those whose loyalty to the Lotus is unwavering.”

We can do nothing about the Corrupted who value fealty to the Lotus over honor, they are our enemies now. The Blind can still be saved, we just need to reach them and cast away their fear of Lotus and the Corrupted.

“Very well. In that case, it’s best that you focus on gathering as many of the Blind as you can. In the meanwhile, I will hunt down the Lotus.”

How do you plan on finding them? Nobody has ever seen their main base of operations.

“I’ve already started working on a lead. Just leave it to me.”

And the Corrupted? How should we deal with them?

“Kill on sight, but they are not the primary threat. We’re playing it defensively until I can track down the Lotus.”

Alright, we will get started as soon as we can, she replied with finality, bowing her head before moving out with the rest of the Liberated.

“Well look at you, Mr. Commander,” Stalker chimed in. “You’re exactly what you said you didn’t want to be.”

“Did you learn where that Prime’s ship has been?” I asked, ignoring her sass.

“Everything, even where its going right now. Why? What do you think you’ll get out of him?” she asked excitedly.

“The first piece of the puzzle.”

Chapter 12: Return of the Nightmare

"So, we going to assault the Prime’s dojo and corner it there?” Stalker asked, making herself comfortable after teleporting the two of us back to my ship.

“Not quite, we’d be on his home territory and there might be Blind there as well,” I replied, taking my cockpit chair before she had a chance to. “No, we’re going to trail him to his next mission and ambush him there.”

“And what if the Prime isn’t going alone? It might have Blind in its squad.”

“If that’s the case, I’m willing to bet I can single him out,” I pondered, setting a course for the coordinates Stalker uploaded beforehand. “I angered him greatly back at the dojo. If I can use that against him, I can incite him to come at me one on one.”

“I doubt its squad will just let it charge you alone,” she remarked.

“That’s where you come in. Before I lure the Prime away, you will be ready to intervene with the security system. When I separate him, you will prevent his squad from following after him using any means necessary. Hard lockdowns, disabling life support, creating a vacuum in the room, whatever you need to do.”

“Music to my ears, Firstborn,” she said with enthusiasm, looking excited already. “So, what makes you think that this Prime knows anything? It could just be a dressed up grunt, for all we know.”

“I’m not so sure about that. Would the Lotus really send some rank-and-file grunt to bear their Voice? From what I understand, Tenno that wear Prime warframes must have earned favor from the Lotus; that’s why they look so much more grandiose than their standard counterparts. I’m betting that somewhere in that Tenno’s warframe is information that will help lead us to the Lotus and their base.”

“As good a guess as any,” she shrugged.

“Now, if these coordinates are accurate, that means the Prime is somewhere in the Histo region of the Eris system.”

“Eris is completely overrun by the Infested,” Stalker added. “That will make my job a bit more difficult; the Infestation wreaks havoc on unmaintained systems.”

“Indeed, but that also works in our favor. The Prime won’t be expecting any sentient life to be actively working against him on his mission. We will truly have the element of surprise if we time ourselves right.”

“True. We better be ready, we’ll be within teleport range soon,” she concluded.

Leaning back in my chair, I ran the situation over in my head. There were more than a few variables to consider in this mission. The Prime himself should not be too difficult, so long as he is separated from his squad -- assuming he will have a squad to support him in the first place. If Stalker for some reason is unable to buy me enough time, I suppose I’ll have to deal with them all. Avoiding such a scenario would be preferable , but I won’t let the lives of a few interfere with my ultimate goal.

The radar of my ship pinged, detecting another vessel. Upon closer inspection, it appeared to be another Corpus military ship, although smaller in size than the ship I fought Saryn on. Four Tenno fighters could be seen attached to one side of the vessel, confirming that this was our destination.

“Let’s go, Stalker,” I said, standing upright. “Time to go to work.”

With a nod, she teleported us onto the Corpus ship. Thankfully, we appeared at their extraction point -- a large room containing a raised platform with staircases on either side leading downwards to the rest of the ship and one in the middle leading upwards towards a storage area -- so finding them would be relatively easy. Patting Stalker’s shoulder, she activated her stealth and moved out. Following suit, I jogged down the left staircase and began looking out for signs of the Tenno squad.

Just barely entering a room with three levels and two downward ramps flanked by stairs on either side leading to another large door at the bottom, I ran into a mob of Infested. When I tried to cloak, however, nothing happened. Now that I think about it, in all the time that I’ve been wearing this warframe, it never occurred to me to check if it has cloaking functionality. Cursing my carelessness, I teleported into the next room over -- a hallway that branched off the room I was in with a locked door at the end -- but the Infested wouldn’t give up the chase that easy. I had to lose them, or the Tenno would realize that Infested weren’t their only enemies on this ship. Perhaps my umbrakinesis can come in handy here. Since the lights are mostly dead, I wonder if I can cover myself in shadow and hide my presence that way? It wouldn’t be nearly as effective as my old cloak, but it’s certainly better than walking around completely visible. Willing the darkness to envelope me completely, I made my way out into the Infested-filled room.

The Infested were looking around, trying to sniff me out, so they still knew I was there somewhere. However, it looks like they don’t know exactly where I am. Guess this much will have to do. Spotting a flickering emergency light down at the end of the room, I decided to test something out. Walking over to it, I waved my hand through the light. My arm appeared to have been blurred out by the blackness covering it, as well as leaving a rather ghostly trail that was very noticeable in the light. So, that means that I can’t stealth my way through well-lit rooms, either. Although it does make me look like an apparition, so it might have its uses.

Moving onward, I ghosted my way through three or four more rooms before I heard the telltale sound of gunfire. There, down on the other end of a long, narrow hallway with windows extending down the entire length and two pairs of stairs dipping downward, was the Tenno squad. Led by the Prime himself, no less.

“Stalker, you ready to cause some chaos?” I asked over comms.

“Ready and waiting,” she replied eagerly. “This is gonna be fun~”

With a smirk, I stood in the large doorway and waited for the Tenno squad. My sword remained sheathed, and I crossed my arms. Shortly after, the Prime reached my end of the room, three other Tenno -- a Frost, Banshee, and Ember -- in tow. When his flashlight just barely caught sight of my face, he stopped on a dime and aimed his Lex at me, causing the other three to aim their respective weapons at me. Their flashlights should have lit me up like a Christmas tree, but the blackness covering me remained just as dark as if their flashlights were never there. Now, to separate them. Backing up so the door closes in front of me, I prepared to act swiftly.

Prime charged through the door with the three Tenno right behind him. Their flashlights were off target, so they didn’t immediately see where I was. Teleporting behind the Prime, I grabbed him by the horn on his helmet and yanked him back into the room we were just in, making him stumble and fall down in surprise. Stalker must have been watching through the security cameras, as the door closed and entered a hard lockdown, requiring a keypass to open again. Perfect timing, Stalker! The other three Tenno were locked out. Now, it was time to deal with Prime.

He sprang to his feet and scanned the room with his flashlight. Good, he knows I’m in the room with him, but not where. I smacked him across the back of his helmet and teleported to the top of the stairs a few meters away. After looking behind him and seeing nothing, he whipped around and his flashlight landed dead center on me. He wasted no time in trying to shoot me, but I was faster and teleported to the other end of the hallway. He sprinted after me, jumping up and wall running over the stairs.

“Down, boy, down!” I hissed, teleporting in front of him and punching him right in the center of his face while he was busy wall running.

His momentum halted in its tracks, he fell to the bottom floor yet managed to land on his feet. Furiously, he scanned the room with his flashlight again to try and find me, but I had teleported into the adjacent side of the hallway. Peeking my head slowly around the corner of the doorway that connected the two, I waited for his flashlight to pass over me again. I could practically see him jump when he finally noticed me staring at him, opening fire as fast as he could. Stifling a chuckle, I teleported to the top of the stairs closest to him. When he saw me, I teleported even further back into the darkness. Toying with this Prime tickled my sadistic side, but I was working on borrowed time. It’s about time to really break him.

Prime rushed up after me, his flashlight darting every which way in an attempt to spot me. On a whim, I willed the darkness to mold itself into a silhouette that had my shape. Backing away from it, I watched and waited to see the results. Prime’s flashlight eventually passed over it, causing him to fire a perfectly aimed shot right into the silhouette’s head. However, instead of me dropping dead like the Prime expected, the silhouette evanesced into the darkness. Heh, that really confused him. Creating several more silhouettes of myself all around the room to distract him, I teleported back down the stairs and began creeping up on the Prime from below. Prime was firing like mad at every silhouette that came into his view. Eventually, as I was almost right behind him, I heard the damning click of a gun out of ammo. Unsheathing and coating my blade in blackness, the time to strike was now.

“End of the line, Prime,” I whispered directly behind him as I drove my sword through his back. The blade pierced cleanly through him and protruded out of his chest.

Pulling my blade of out him, he staggered forward a bit before falling to the ground. He turned over slowly and stared at me, backing up until he was up against the locked door. The lights started flickering overhead. Very slowly, I started walking over to him to finish him off.

“What’s the matter, Prime? Aren’t I just a figment of your imagination?” I taunted, twirling my shadow-covered blade around in my bloodstained hand. “Come on, Prime, pull yourself together. I’m just a fake, remember?”

Before long, I was standing directly over him. Sheathing my blade, I grabbed him by the neck with my bloodstained hand. He looked confused at first, but he would understand soon enough. My gauntlet glowed red, and little by little, the Prime was being broken up into chunks of data. Despite wearing a mask that covered his face, I could feel the suffering and horror that overflowed from the Prime. The sensation forced me to break into a smile as I met his stare, watching him slowly digitize. Too soon, however, did his body completely break down, leaving nothing but bloodstains.

“Stalker, we’re done here,” I spoke calmly into the comms, making my way back.

“I can see that,” she responded giddily. “You have a good time?”

“I got what we needed,” I replied with a smirk. “Let’s head back so you can analyze it.”

“I can hardly wait~”

Chapter 13: Bittersweet Victories

“You run into any problems keeping the other three Tenno at bay?” I asked as we teleported back into my ship.

“They were persistent in their hacking attempts, I’ll give them that,” Stalker replied as she swiftly took my chair. “Ultimately, as you saw, they never managed to complete the bypass. Eventually, the Infested caught their scent and they had to give up on following Prime for a bit.”

“I see, good,” I exhaled, nodded at her to set a course back to the dojo while I reluctantly sat on the med-station chair. “You should start data mining Prime as soon as possible. I want to know if this was a wasted trip sooner rather than later.”

“I’ve already run some initial scans; there looks to be several interesting pieces of information, but I won’t have any specifics until we get back to the dojo,” she stated, swirling around in my chair. “More importantly, I noticed that you created a few more powers for your warframe. Cloaking and decoys?”

“It would have been nice to know earlier that this warframe doesn’t have the light-bending cloak that my old one had,” I muttered, leaning back and crossing my arms. “The cloak I created is only useful in low-light areas, and it leaves a telltale trail whenever I move. The decoys, too, are only useful when there is little light present.”

“But that worked out to your benefit. Did you notice how effective they were at psyching out the Tenno? Did you see how frantic that Prime was acting before you stabbed it?” she responded as if she was vividly recalling the scene. “That turned Lotus’ comforting lies into a handicap; they saw you as a hallucination up until you actually injured Prime.”

“Perhaps, but it’s a trick that only works in the dark. If they had been on a working ship, with working lights, my job would have been more difficult,” I noted.

“Well, it’s to be expected that umbrakinesis works better in the dark,” she shrugged. “Just kill the lights and you’re a ghost.”

“Hmm, that’s rather inconvenient, but I suppose it can’t be helped,” I sighed.

Have you finished your mission? a line of text ran across my HUD.

“That you, Saryn?” I spoke into the comms. “We’re on our way back now.”

Take your time. This den of traitors will be wiped from the map in no time.

“Ah, dammit,” I muttered before disconnecting the comms and sitting up in my chair. “Shift the engines into overdrive, Stalker. We need to hurry.”

“Why’s that?” she asked with a tilt of her head, but still doing what I asked.

“That wasn’t Saryn on the comms just now. The dojo is probably being sieged right now.”

“For such a serious turn of events, you don’t sound that hurried,” she remarked.

“There are hundreds of Liberated at that dojo. I trust that they can take care of themselves,” I replied, standing up and leaning on the back of Stalker’s chair. “However, since the siegers took the time to inform me about it, that must mean they’re pretty confident about their odds of success.”

“I see,” she sighed. “They mobilized pretty fast, though. It hasn’t even been a day since you told off the Voice of the Lotus.”

“Indeed, they acted faster than I anticipated they would. Now we know just how high the Liberated rank on the Lotus’ hit list. Which means we’re going to have to work double time in tracking down the Lotus.”

“If word reached them already of that Prime’s capture, then they probably know what you’re planning. It might take longer to track them down.”

“Maybe, but let’s wait and see what Prime’s warframe has to say before we jump to conclusions,” I replied, glancing at the nav console. “In the meanwhile, we have lend assistance in the defense back at the dojo.”

“That’s the other thing, what if there are Blind there? There won’t be any time or method of separating them from the Corrupted,” she added, glancing up at me.

“I told you before, I won’t let collateral damage get in the way of reaching my goal,” I responded. “If a few redeemable Tenno need to die in order to wipe out many Corrupted, then that’s a price I’m willing to pay.”

“I know how you feel about it. I’m more concerned about your Tenno allies, the Liberated, and how they would feel about your decision,” she explained. “We can find the Lotus without them, but they’re taking all the heat from both the Lotus and the Corrupted while we’re out hunting, so you should watch what you do and say around them. They are still Tenno, and they clearly still haven’t forgotten or forgiven how you helped thin their population.”

“I’m aware of that,” I sighed, recalling Saryn’s words. “Nevertheless, the mission comes first. How close are we to the dojo?”

“Within teleport range, just about,” she answered. “We could enter right where the Liberated are probably holding up.”

“If we did that, we’d be facing everything the Corrupted have on one front. Let me think,” I muttered, formulating a plan in my head. “You will enter where the Tenno are least present and assess the status of the dojo’s systems. If you can, grant yourself access and do whatever you want to mess with the Corrupted. Feel free to do some digging, too.”

“You always know what makes me tick,” she replied, the excitement in her voice rising. “I’m reluctant to ask, but what will you be doing in the meanwhile?”

“I’ll enter where the Corrupted are gathering the most, and cut my way through to the Liberated. If the Liberated press onto the offensive during my incursion, the Corrupted will be stuck in the middle. If the Liberated can’t or won’t press the attack, then I’ll just have to make a beeline for them and wake them up.”

“Is that really a good idea?” she asked, her previous excitement dulled down. “If the Corrupted are bold enough to siege the dojo like this, then there must be a great many of them..”

“No doubt, but I don’t have a death wish. I’m not going in guns blazing,” I assured, double checking my gear. “Provided the Liberated do what I expect them to do, I’m the distraction at best.”

“If you say so,” she said, clearly not convinced, before slowing the ship down to drift speed. “The least you could do is take this Energy Siphon with you.”

“Where did you get this?” I asked, catching the card she tossed at me.

“Don’t worry about it,” she avoided my question, standing up and facing me. “I’ll see you inside.”

“Right, I will,” I responded, slotting in the Siphon, as she teleported away. Glancing at the radar scan that Stalker ran without my knowing, I saw that the greatest congregation of Tenno is in the dojo’s Clan Hall. Activating my cloak beforehand, I teleported into their Clan Hall.

Appearing atop one of the tree-like growths between the wall and the ceiling, I noticed that whether as a good sign or an omen, the lights were out. There’s some natural illumination from the trees, as well as the Tenno’s flashlights, but not enough to make me noticeable. The Tenno are many in number, around thirty or forty in just this room alone, all moving around with a purpose. It was about then that I realized that I have no idea how to tell Corrupted apart from Liberated. They all look the same! How could I overlook something so crucially obvious? As my mind pondered this conundrum, I scanned the room to look for clues as to who these Tenno are. Spying a pile of Tenno corpses shoved off to the opposite side of the room by the guardrail overlooking the white abyss below. Hoping to find something there, I teleported and knelt down beside the pile.

The dozen or so late Tenno thrown atop each other look no different from the Tenno that infested this room. A sigh escaped my throat. Killing Blind as collateral damage is one thing, but accidentally slaughtering a room full of Liberated is simply not an option. As I began to stand up, something grabbed my arm from below. Immediately looking back down, I saw a Vauban -- half buried under his kin -- weakly holding my forearm. Not allowing me any time to question, he showed me his upper right arm; specifically, the symbol that appeared to be engraved onto him. It looks like a bunch of squares with some lines attached, to me.

自由, the symbol appeared as text in my HUD. Liberated.

The Vauban released my arm after that, probably joining the rest of his kin in that pile. What is that supposed to mean? That any Tenno with this ‘自由’ symbol engraved onto them is one of the Liberated? Well, that would make everything much more convenient for me, if only by a little bit. However, I don’t exactly have the time to examine every Tenno’s arms to see if they’re Liberated or not. Oh well, at least it helps a little bit. If Liberated corpses are piled up so disgracefully like that, the Tenno in this room are probably Corrupted, but I had to make sure. Standing up fully, I shadowed one Volt that walked closeby and tried to get a good look at his arms. On neither arm did I see such a symbol, and to cement that fact, the Volt quickly turned around and leveled his Latron. Upon his flashlight shining at me, he opened fire, drawing the attention of every Tenno in the room.

“Well, I guess that solves that issue,” I spoke aloud for all to hear, blinking back into the darkness and preparing my blade. “None of you will be leaving this dojo alive.”

There is no reason for me to hold back, so I extended the darkness on my blade as far as I physically could, forty-three centimeters off with a curve nearing the end. The Corrupted were on high alert, scanning the entirety of the room in an effort to find me. Staying in the darkness, I blinked around their cones of vision and struck the first blow, impaling an Ember from behind and flinging her against the center support beam with a resounding thud almost overpowering the crack of her neck. Wasting no time, I blinked to the next closest Tenno -- a Frost -- and sliced him vertically in half from the bottom up. Unfortunately, he didn’t actually split in half thanks to the copious shadow coating on my blade, but he fell to the ground all the same.

The Corrupted were having none of that as they lit up my general location with light and bullets, barely allowing me to blink out of there in time. Time is not on my side, killing two Tenno at a time isn’t fast enough. Blinking to various corners of the room, I planted several decoys in order to buy me some time. One by one, I cut down the distracted Corrupted with a single strike in quick succession. The killing power my blade had with its shadow coating at max was enormous, but I could feel my warframe’s energy waning with every kill. The Energy Siphon was helping, but I wasn’t giving it very much chance to recharge me. After I run wild here, I’ll have to take it easy until my battery is back to nominal.

Eventually, only the one Volt from the start remained. His gaze darted everywhere, looking for me, but no matter where he looked all he saw was the slaughtered remains of his comrades. He backed up and stood in front of the door leading deeper into the dojo. With regret, I blinked behind him and swiftly cut him in twain. It’s a shame, but I didn’t have time to play with him; I have to keep moving to where the Liberated are. Taking one last glance at my handiwork, I walked out through the bloodstained door.

The corridors that the door behind the Volt led to were empty. Was that room just a fallback point for the Corrupted? If so, that means I’m coming up right behind their front lines. Hopefully, the Liberated will realize as much and launch a counterattack. Now, I’m not opposed to killing all the Corrupted myself, but this would end much more swiftly if the Liberated did the other half of the work.

“Firstborn, you all right?” Stalker asked over the comms.

“Just fine, the Siphon helped,” I replied. “You manage well?”

“No problems here,” she answered with a sigh. “I’ve got some info that you should hear. Some bad, some good.”

“Lay it on me. I’m making my way to the Corrupted’s front line right now.”

“Well, you might have noticed that the lights are out,” she began. “The reactors are unstable, due to the Corrupted attempting to sabotage them. They’re liable to fail if not fixed soon. I’ve done what I can, but there’s only so much that I can do when they still occupy it.”

“That’s a definite problem. What else?”

“The Liberated have taken casualties and are holding up in the Great Hall. The Corrupted aren’t pressing them -- thanks to you, I assume -- but don’t expect reinforcements or backup anytime soon.”

“Hmph, I expected better from them. How did they get cornered so easily?”

“That’s the part you might like,” she responded happily. “There’s another Prime leading the siege. A Frost Prime.”

 

Chapter 14: Victory?

 

 

“A Frost Prime, huh?” I repeated into the comms.  “That’s a nice catch.  The Lotus might be closer than we thought at this rate.”

 

“Unfortunately, that’s all I’ve got for you,” Stalker replied.  “I’ve got to do something about the reactors before the Corrupted damage them beyond repair.”

 

“You need any help with that?”

 

“I should manage fine on my own.  You’ve got bigger problems to worry about, anyway,” she noted.

 

“Very true,” I responded.  “Good luck.”

 

The comms having disconnected, I picked up my pace down the corridors.  The further I went into the dojo, the more signs of battle I saw along the floor and walls.  Peeking into the rooms that branched off the main hallway, there were mostly corpses of both Liberated and Corrupted.  Credit where it’s due, at least the Liberated gave as much as they got.  However, in a battle of numbers, the Liberated are losing.  Increasing my already brisk pace, I finally reached an elevator.  As the door opened upon my approach, I saw half a dozen Corrupted -- mostly wounded -- try to exit it before seeing me.

 

“Were you Tenno, by chance, going back down there?” I asked in a mockingly polite voice while pointing behind me.  “I’m sorry, but nobody is alive back there.”

 

The Corrupted just stood in front of me like statues.  Taking a closer look at their wounds, it was clear they weren’t in any shape to fight.  Part of me wanted to toy with them for a bit, but I knew I had to keep moving forward.  Opening my mouth to speak, the group of Tenno pulled out their sidearms and fired at me.  Well fine then, it’s no skin off my nose!  Blinking behind them, I let loose a flurry of slashes.  Four of them dropped dead to the floor, while the other two glanced at each other.  Shortly after, they dropped their weapons and held up their hands.

 

“That’s better,” I nodded my head before proceeding onto the elevator and hitting the switch, starting my descent.

 

It was a relatively short elevator ride, leaving me no time for idle thinking.  Beyond the door was another corridor, but this one was packed with Corrupted.  Some were facing forward, towards the front lines.  Others were running into and out of other rooms, perhaps ransacking the place.  Then there were some wounded who were heading towards the elevator, towards me.  They didn’t immediately see me, so I took the opportunity to blink behind them and avoid them.  Killing wounded is distasteful, and I didn’t have time to play with them.

 

Those who were fighting-fit, however, were free game.  Closing in on a door leading to one of the separate rooms, an Excalibur came jogging out and straight into my blade.  His pal behind him, another Excalibur, saw it and started opening fire.  Naturally, that alerted every Tenno in the corridor and perhaps further down, as well.  Tossing the dead Excalibur aside, I blinked beside the other Excalibur and struck him down.  Placing a decoy, I blinked out into the corridor as a squad of Tenno entered the room and fired at said decoy, giving me the chance to slice them all at once.  Tenno piled out into the hallway and fired blindly down its length.  Blinking just above them, I dropped down in the middle of them and unleashed a whirlwind of swings in every direction.

 

Blood rained down from the air, and none of it was mine.  If the Tenno could scream, I’m fairly certain this hallway would be filled with their cries of death.  Looking around, it was impossible to tell how many Corrupted littered the floor.  Those that survived the slaughter -- all five of them -- seem to surrender, so I pressed on further down the hallway.  Unexpectedly, I encountered no other Tenno during the rest of the lengthy corridor.  Walking through the door at the end, I could understand why.

 

The Great Hall, which appeared to have seen the worst of the fighting, was dead silent.  The Liberated that remained had held their position on the more open half of the room opposite me, and were probably safe only because of the sheer willpower of their Frosts being able to hold up their Snow Globes for so long.  Standing in the middle of the room were two squads of Tenno, with the Frost Prime at the head, but he was facing in my direction.  The lights were still dead, so I know he can’t see me.

 

You may escape my sight, demon, but I can smell the blood of my brothers and sisters on your blade, he started talking to me.  To have cut through all of my kin in such a short amount of time, Lotus was right to prioritize you over our other enemies.

 

“You’re outnumbered and outmatched now, Prime,” I replied, constantly moving around so he doesn’t guess my location by sound.  “Though, I won’t accept surrender.”

 

I would not have called you here if you did.

 

“So, that was you on the comms earlier, then.”

 

Indeed.  It was a gamble, but it looks to have paid off.

 

“Your soldiers have been slaughtered and you’ve been surrounded.  You have some big plan to declare yourself the winner in this?”

 

It should not be much longer now, so I suppose you deserve to know, he began.  Have you noticed how the lighting is dim in this dojo?

 

“What about it?” I asked, feigning ignorance at what he was probably getting at.

 

In a matter of seconds, the reactors will destabilize completely, and put all of us to the flame.

 

“That’s a rather pyrrhic victory,” I began with a sigh.  “At least, it would be.  If it worked.”

 

Where does that confidence come from?

 

“I already took care of the reactors.  Killed your saboteurs, patched up the reactors, and continued on here without skipping a beat,” I bluffed wildly, stopping my movements in the center of the walkway.  “I just kept the lights off for practical reasons.”

 

A valiant attempt, but your lie is obvious.  I know for a fact that-

 

As he spoke, the lights immediately lit up the entire room.  This is great, since it means Stalker finally fixed the reactors and probably saved our lives.  However, there is a pretty big downside.  As a burning sensation struck the center of my back through to my chest, I mentally cursed Stalker for her terrible timing.  Turning around to see who shot me, I saw the Volt from before, wielding a recently used Lex.  Didn’t I kill him?  Maybe he was healed by one of the Tenno that I let live.  Him shooting me also revealed to me another critical aspect of this warframe that I should’ve asked about earlier.  Apparently the Corpus didn’t think to slap a shield onto this damn warframe.

 

However, something was amiss.  Getting directly shot through the chest by a Lex should’ve had me suffering an immense amount of pain by now.  No such pain ever made itself known.  In fact, I feel.. angry.  Anger began burning in my heart.  Anger is slowly consuming my thoughts.  Supporting my head with my hands, I started involuntarily swinging my head wildly, as if to shake out unwanted thoughts.  A blood haze fogged over my senses, my breathing grew ragged and hoarse.  When I watched my hands move around in front of my eyes, I felt like I was just watching my body from the sidelines.

 

“YOu..” I muttered in a deep, twisted voice that would’ve been comical if I was doing it intentionally.  “YoU rEalLY ShoUlDn’T HAvE doNE ThAt!!”

 

Swinging around so that the Volt was in front of me, I charged him full speed.  His bullets hit my chest dead on, but that didn’t slow me down.  I tackled him, slamming him against the wall.  The cracking of his ribcage didn’t even partially satisfy me.  With my blade, I started slicing him repeatedly.  His arms, his torso, his head, every part of his body tasted my blade.  Even when I knew he was right and truly dead now, I couldn’t stop myself from grabbing him by the face and throwing him behind me, no more than a few meters from where the Frost Prime and his Tenno squads stood.

 

“NeW.. eNeMiES,” I muttered when the Prime entered my vision before charging them too.  “i’LL TEar tHOsE RinGS riGHT ofF YoUr HEaD!”

 

Without a word, he and his squads began firing upon me.  They must’ve thought I lost my mind and was rampaging like a wild animal.  At this point, I’m beginning to think that’s what happened too.  Though, that begs the question as to how.  I mean, I’m no stranger to taking bullet wounds; I’ve suffered far worse than just a single shot from a Lex.  So with that said, why is my body rampaging like this?  Watching myself tear through the Tenno squads with sword and fist, I had to admit that it did give me plenty of time to think.

 

“I was afraid this would happen..” Stalker’s voice echoed through the comms.  “Saryn, have a Trinity ready.”

 

What, she knew something like this could happen?  That must mean it has something to do with my warframe, and not my mental health.  Well good, least we got rid of that option.  Still, I would love it if she started warming up to the idea of sharing these kinds of details with me before I’m forced to experience them.  My vision turned towards the Frost Prime, who was the last of the Corrupted standing.

 

You go on about being an honorable warrior, but look at you now!  You are not a warrior, you are just a monster!

 

“EnOUgH oF yoUR WoRDs!” I shouted before tackling him to the floor.

 

From here, I must have stabbed the Prime over a dozen times in quick succession.  Following that, I tore off the golden half rings that decorated his helmet and stabbed the ends of them back into his head.  As blood seeped out of his new golden antlers, my vision scanned the room until it came across the Liberated.  Don’t tell me..

 

“MoRE ENeMieS!” I shouted once more, shooting up and charging at them.

 

Before I got within several meters of them, the same Trinity I remember dueling stepped forward and casted Blessing.  My body quickly slowed down from a charge to a slumberous walk, before stopping completely and falling over.  Whatever Stalker told Saryn to do, it worked marvelously.  My consciousness was fading, but believe me, I’m gonna have some choice words with Stalker when I wake up. 

 

Chapter 15: Recuperation

 

Having regained consciousness only several minutes ago, I found the dojo to thankfully not be as silent as I slightly anticipated it would be.  Liberated were hurrying every which way, clearing out the dead and cleaning up the mess.  The silence was only around me, with Trinity busy yanking a staggering number of bullets out of my body -- my chassis having been removed beforehand -- and Saryn standing beside me with a stare.  Despite my fatigue and sense of numbness, Saryn had been bringing me up to speed on what exactly just happened.

 

“A failsafe?” I asked wearily from my spot on one of the benches in the Great Hall.

 

That is how your Stalker explained it, Saryn replied, standing beside me with her arms crossed.

 

“So, how does it work?  What does it do to me?”

 

Your Stalker believes that it, when triggered, releases a torrent of rage-inducing chemicals throughout your body.  Apparently, it takes only seconds to go into effect, wherein you fly into a rampage.  Losing your sense of self, you attack friend and foe alike until you are slain; in this case, your Stalker warned us in advance and gave Trinity just enough time to prepare her Blessing and sedate you.

 

“I took a myriad of bullets before, but it didn’t even slow me down.  That’s thanks to the failsafe too, huh?”

 

Yes, I imagine your tolerance for pain must also increase during your rampage.  Without that, the failsafe functionality would be rather useless.

 

“Hm, so since it increases my durability, do we know what would happen if there’s nobody left alive around me when the failsafe is still active?”

 

It could be any number of explanations, none of them good, she answered.  You could run around aimlessly, looking for someone else to kill while it wears off, becoming a danger to anything nearby.  You could also suffer permanent mental and physical damage from the chemicals remaining active for too long, turning you into a mindless animal.  You could even see yourself as an enemy, and try to kill yourself.

 

“Well, this is rather problematic.  How am I supposed to fight if any wound I suffer will send me into a rage?” I pondered with a sigh.

 

It should only be fatal wounds that activate the failsafe, so a glancing blow won’t push you over the edge.  However, that just means you should never fight face to face or in a well lit environment.  I get the feeling your warframe wasn’t designed for it, anyway.

 

“What a crutch,” I muttered discontentedly.  “Where’s the one responsible for this, anyway?”

 

Had Trinity not been tending my wounds, I would’ve simply said ‘Stalker’, but the Liberated do not yet know of her existence.  I couldn’t predict what their reaction would be if they learned a female version of my old armor was walking among them without their knowing, doing who knows what.  It makes talking about her around Liberated other than Saryn difficult.  Saryn, thankfully, can talk about her as blatantly as she wants, since other Tenno don’t hear her unless she wants them to.

 

Ah, well that is the other thing, she began.  When you were sleeping, she informed me that she had business to care of elsewhere.  If she is as enamored with you as she seems, it probably has something to do with your warframe’s failsafe.  She also said that she would need to borrow your ship for the duration of her leave.

 

“What?!” I shouted, partially standing up before Trinity forcibly pushed me back onto the bench to continue her work.  “My ship?  Seriously?”

 

She claimed it was because her business took her farther than she could teleport from here, so she needed a ride.  You understand why there was not much I could have done stop her.  It is highly unlikely I would have allowed her, or if she would even desire, to use one of our ships.

 

“Yeah, I get that,” I sighed, lamenting my misfortune.  “Could have at least waited until I woke up, though.”

 

That is what I suggested, but she appeared to be in a hurry.  The way I see it, she cannot find it in herself to face you after your recent performance, considering that she never informed you about the functionality sooner, she analyzed with a casual shrug.

 

“I see.  I’ll cross that bridge when I come to it.  Let’s get back to busi-,” I began to reply with finality before Trinity tore out the last bullet from my chest.  “Ah, thanks Trinity.  You’ve probably saved a lot of lives earlier.”

 

With a brief nod at me, she gathered her tools and move to assist other wounded Tenno.  I suppose I shouldn’t have expected a response; talking with Saryn to the extent that I do sometimes makes me forget that Tenno are rather silent by nature.  Well, there was that Frost Prime, but he was a special case.

 

Getting back to business, Saryn picked up where I left off, your Stalker did leave us the data she decrypted from the Excalibur Prime you captured.

 

“How kind of her,” I replied sarcastically.  “Have you looked through it already?”

 

I took the liberty of doing so.  The only noteworthy piece of information we found was the approximate location of the Lotus’ main base.  However, at the moment, we are unable to use it.

 

“Well, that’s something at least.  Why can’t we use it?” I asked, making a mental note that Stalker probably dug through whatever other interesting data she found before handing it over.

 

It points towards the Void, she replied matter-of-factly.

 

“So, it’s useless to us, is what you’re saying?”

 

At the moment, but we can change that, she stated before opening up one of her hands and showing me a small blue device roughly the size of her hand.

 

“And what is that?” I inquired, having never seen such a device before.

 

We Tenno build our dojos on the outskirts of the solar system, away from prying eyes, making them hard to find.  Unless you scour the area for days, you would never find one.  Unless you have the key.

 

“Right, and how does this help us?”

 

This particular key was taken off what was left of the Frost Prime.  I am willing to believe that there must be more information at his dojo that could be of use of us.

 

“You’re suggesting we infiltrate his dojo and search for it?”

 

No, I am suggesting we infiltrate his dojo, find that data, Saryn clenched her fists, massacre every living soul in there, then obliterate the dojo from this plane of existence.

 

“Saryn?  I’m not sure that’s a feasible goal right now,” I advised.  “We don’t have the numbers to pull it off.”

 

What do numbers matter?  We killed more Corrupted than we lost, and you slew over a dozen squads before you went berserk.  Cleaning out his dojo should be no different.

 

“We don’t know how many Tenno are in his dojo.  We don’t know the layout.  We don’t know if reinforcements would be a concern.  We don’t even know if we’d be able to hack their database,” I attempted to calm her.  “That is why we would need a sufficient force before attempting an assault.”

 

 Is that what concerns you?  We are not as skilled at cyber warfare as your Stalker is, but we are not novices.  Learning the layout from hacking into any data entry point is well within our capabilities, she crossed her arms again, bending down until she was eye level with me.  Or have you come to rely on your Stalker?

 

“That’s comical, but there’s still the enemy opposition to consider.  Even if we charged them with every Liberated that could hold a weapon, it would just lead to more death,” I retorted, feeling the heat of her glare that I knew she was shooting at me.

 

That is why you and I are going alone.

 

“Come again?”

 

Chapter 16: Hell Hath No Fury

 

“Saryn, I understand your desire for revenge, I really do; but you’re not thinking rationally,” I held my hands up to ward off her burning anger.  “Even if we had the element of surprise, taking on an entire dojo by ourselves is a bit far-fetched.”

 

You are still saying that, after everything you pulled off here?  What are you so fearful of?

 

“Now look here, I’m just being cautious.  We have no idea how many they number.  There could be only a handful, or there could be thousands of them.  Charging blindly into their home territory would not end well.”

 

She turned and waved over a passing Ash.  Assuming they were talking to each other, I leaned back with a sigh.  Saryn and I haven’t known each other for very long, but this is the first time I’ve seen her so bloodthirsty.  It surprised me that I of all people have to be the voice of caution in such a situation.  I’m not opposed to exacting revenge and counterattacking the Corrupted, but it would be pointless if we died while trying to do that.  That is something she’s either ignoring entirely, or believes isn’t even a concern in the first place.

 

Let me ask you something, Saryn spoke up, having finished whatever business she had with the Ash.  How many Corrupted do you think besieged us here?

 

“I can’t even begin to guess, but I have a feeling you’re about to tell me,” I replied calmly, wondering where she was going with this.

 

Three hundred, total.  None of them escaped, and only several of their wounded survived, she began pacing back and forth.  Not only that, but now I know that those Corrupted were some of the best they had.

 

“Is that the official reason regarding the Liberated being cornered as much as they did?”

 

Saryn abruptly halted her pace before turning to me.  Oh dear, it looks like I struck a nerve.  She forcibly grabbed my neck and held me against the railing behind the bench.  Her grip wasn’t tight enough to restrict airflow, which led me to believe that she’s rather showing me her flaming anger that can’t be accurately translated through text.

 

They attacked only mere hours after you left.  We were not expecting them to move against us so soon.  It was a surprise assault by a detachment of their finest fighters.  Given the circumstances, things could have ended far worse.  I sincerely hope you are not insinuating-

 

“Relax, I wouldn’t dare,” I replied temperately.  “Continue.”

 

Anyway, that was only part of my point, she tore her hand off my neck and resumed her pacing.  Your primary concern against launching a counterattack is a matter of numbers.  Do you know how many Corrupted you killed before going berserk?

 

Crossing my arms, I remained silent.  She’s leading up to something, and I’m not sure whatever she has to say is good news for me.

 

Over one hundred and ten Corrupted died by your hand.  A third of their force, not counting how many more could have been included in that number if the reactors were not restored, she paced back and forth before stopping in front of me, returning back to her glare.  Now, why is it that a man who can kill over a River Clan’s worth of skilled Tenno and walk away unscathed, is worried about numbers?

 

Though doubtful of the accuracy of that kill count, that’s essentially what I was afraid she would say.  This concern I have is highly uncharacteristic of me, and she’s calling me out on it.  The question now is how I answer her; I have no answer readily available, yet her stare and posture are demanding a sufficient response.  Previously, I figured I was worried about our safety, as any sane individual would be at such a proposition.  However, her explanation shot that out the airlock.

 

“I.. suppose you have a point,” I sighed with reluctance, “however, that’s only under certain circumstances.  Furthermore, were something to happen to either of us, the Liberated would be crippled beyond repair.”

 

So we kill the lights beforehand and proceed as planned, problem solved.  Any other concerns, or can we get underway?

 

“Where’s my chassis?” I gave up, deciding that dealing with whatever consequences that will surely arise is a preferable alternative to continuing the conversation.

 

Under the bench.  Now hurry up, we are leaving as soon as possible.

 

With that, she finally left me in peace and walked off.  She certainly is a rather headstrong individual when she’s angry.  Standing upright, I pulled my chassis out from under the bench and began the tedious process of putting it back on.  The armor’s self-repair remarkably patched up the bullet holes, making it look good as new.  Presuming that Saryn would come back to collect me in no time, I picked up my pace.

 

“It’s unnerving how she avoids thinking about what could go wrong, though,” I muttered to myself.  “Is she confident and just ignoring it, or just too bloodthirsty to care?”

 

She can obviously handle herself, but I’ll have to keep an eye on her regardless.  If things don’t go according to plan, which is always likely, she might try something stupid and put herself at risk.  Naturally, I couldn’t tell her that.  She’d probably get offended, as would any prideful warrior, I’d imagine.  Hm, I guess it all depends on what the situation is.

 

Saryn talks big game, but she’s given me no reason to believe that she has any idea what she’s doing.  All she has really said is that I’ve no right to be worried because of my skill.  Does she plan on just turning off the lights and telling to me run wild?  No, she doesn’t seem like she’s in a disposition to accept playing second fiddle.  Could I just be the insurance plan, then?  That would be even more reckless of her, but as it stands, it would make sense.  Either way, she’s treating me as the one man army that would render any of her plans impervious to failure.  Should I be flattered at that, or annoyed?

 

Having finished adorning my chassis, I glanced over to see what was taking Princess so long.  She appeared to be having a silent conversation with several other Liberated over in the center of the room.  Since eavesdropping on them is impossible, I am left with little choice other than to occupy myself.  Sitting back down, my idle thoughts were free to wander.  However, they immediately turned to what Saryn and the Liberated were possibly talking about.  She’s probably just handing out orders on what to do while we’re away on this suicide mission.  Her back was to me, but the group of Tenno she is speaking with have been glancing at me every now and again.

 

This atmosphere, I don’t like it.  Are they worried about Saryn going on a mission alone with me?  That would be my first guess.  It’s understandable, given the whole failsafe functionality of my warframe.  If I were to get injured badly enough, things would turn south fast.  Since we’re going alone, Trinity wouldn’t be there to sedate me again.  I already beat Saryn twice, so I doubt she would be able to put me down unless she did so before the drugs took full effect.  The time window for that is rather minute, but I’d like to believe that Saryn wouldn’t be naive enough to hesitate.

 

Firstborn, we are leaving now, Saryn glanced over her shoulder at me before making her way out of the Great Hall.

 

Standing upright with a sigh, I double checked my gear before beginning to follow her out.  As I passed the Tenno she was speaking with prior, one of them halted me with a hand on my shoulder.  The Rhino duelist was staring at me, as were the rest of them.  In fact, a great deal of the Liberated all around the room were staring in my direction.

 

Since you were incapable of talking her down, you better ensure she comes back, he warned, never ceasing his stare.  She picked you and you alone for this counterattack; the responsibility now falls to you.

 

“You don’t need to tell me what I already know,” I shrugged off his hand before continuing out of the room.  “I understand well enough.”

 

We will go over the details on the way, she informed me from her spot leaning against the wall as I stepped out into the corridor.  I trust you are ready to go.

 

“Of course.  Lead the way,” I gestured for her to step before me.

 

As we walked towards the hangar, Rhino’s words were fresh on my mind.  This situation I found myself in was awkward at best.  Although that encounter did reveal something unexpected to me.  The Liberated were worried.  They weren’t worried about me, or anything having to do with me, either.  It was a pleasant surprise that their train of thought more or less matched up with mine.  It is not myself that we are concerned about.

Edited June 3, 2013 by Katakuna

[Quetzhal]

Nicely written! I'm very much interested to see where you're going with all of this.

[xxx7]

As a Tenno I might not like the idea of the story, but keep it coming! ;)

Edited May 17, 2013 by xxx7

[Katakuna]

Bang bang, two in one day!  Chapter 10 now up!

 

Firstborn's persuasive speech skills(?) in action, before finding himself in an unwanted position.  The Lotus won't stay blind to his actions forever, though!

 

As always, hope y'all enjoy!

[Iainius]

Oooooh....this sounds like it's going to end awesomely... Whether having Firstborn walking into the sunset or fathering lots of little Tennos... I eagerly anticipate the next chapter.

[Caliocerion]

Is anyone going to draw the Stalker Prime? I want to know what it looks like.

[Katakuna]

And before I go to bed, Chapter 11 now up!

Civil war! Which side will come out on top in the end?

As always, hope y'all enjoy!

Edited May 18, 2013 by Katakuna